England’s World Cup-winning coach Trevor Bayliss sees a lot of Eoin Morgan in Test captain Ben Stokes

The World Cup winning head coach of England has spoken about the similarities between Eoin Morgan and current Test team captain Ben Stokes.

England’s World Cup winning coach Trevor Bayliss has revealed that England’s Test team coach Brendon McCullum spoke with him before going off to coach the national side. Speaking to English news publication The Guardian, Bayliss spoke about the philosophy of cricket that he tried to incorporate alongside Eoin Morgan.

“McCullum rang me before he took off for England and we had a discussion about it,” says Bayliss. “He played the game aggressively but to be honest, that’s just how it is in our part of the world; it’s not playing a Test match like it’s a T20 but more the positive attitude. That’s the most difficult thing to convince people of in the UK,” Bayliss said.

Talking about the new Test side under the captaincy of Ben Stokes, the coach revealed that he sees shades of Eoin Morgan in Stokes.

“We’d be three or four down and Morgs would still go out there and take the game by the throat,” says Bayliss.

“Even if it didn’t work all the time, it gave others the confidence to play that way and push the ceiling,” he said.

“It might not happen overnight for the Test team, especially given the variables of the format. But Stokes is a little more positive thinking than the last couple of captains, which might bring it on a bit quicker. Time will tell,” he spoke about the all rounder.

Ben Stokes’ England have started out positively in the summer against New Zealand, but have faced tough competition against Jasprit Bumrah’s England.