England's head coach Brendon McCullum has acknowledged the team's need for significant improvement, particularly in high-pressure situations, as they prepare for the upcoming ODI World Cup in South Africa. The admission comes after England suffered consecutive defeats in the ongoing tri-series, highlighting concerns about the squad's inexperience.

Their latest loss was against Pakistan in Lahore, where England failed to defend a target of 241 runs despite having Pakistan at 154 for nine. A remarkable unbeaten 113 by Shadab Khan, supported by Haris Rauf, sealed the win for Pakistan. This followed another defeat to Sri Lanka in a high-scoring encounter in Rawalpindi.

McCullum emphasized that the team needs to develop better strategies for handling difficult moments. "Any time you lose, you obviously haven’t been good enough to win. So clearly you’ve got some work to do,” McCullum told reporters. He noted that these intense matches expose players to peak pressure, offering valuable learning opportunities.

The coach also pointed to the limited World Cup experience within the squad, with only Joe Root, Sam Curran, Gus Atkinson, and captain Harry Brook having played in a previous ODI World Cup. He stated, "for us to be serious challengers at, we’ve been open to admit that we need to get better. And we need to get experiences into these guys as quickly as we can."

Despite the setbacks, McCullum believes these losses provide crucial lessons for developing a stronger approach to one-day cricket, especially in managing chases and finding solutions when games seem to be slipping away. He cited Shadab Khan's innings as a prime example of cricket intelligence for his young players.

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