I admire Brendon McCullum's captaincy: Stephen Fleming
Former New Zealand captain and coach of IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings, Stephen Fleming recently spoke with Sydney Morning Herald, where he talked about Brendon McCullum’s captaincy and whether his combative leadership style would suit the Kiwis. Fleming captained McCullum in more than 100 games, and was not initially sure about McCullum's captaincy abilities.
"Early on, he was a little bit rough. He always talked about leadership and captaincy, but he was always viewed as if he would have to smooth the edges a little bit to be a contender, He's done that to a degree, but he still carries that aggressive nature that he's had with his play," Fleming said.
Fleming's understated approach to captaincy was in contrast to McCullum's aggressive style and this might be the reason why he mentioned whether he was unsure about the captaincy change, and also lauded the impact McCullum had made in just over two years as a captain.
"We were pretty measured and pretty understated, trying to overachieve, whereas this team is not arrogant, but a bit more confident in their thoughts and the way they play," Fleming said.
“I think if anything we, the New Zealand public, were uncomfortable with how aggressive he was. Usually we (NZ captains) are, 'Slowly, slowly, safety first,' but he's really taken it to a new level.” Fleming added.
"I personally admire that, and he's got a lot of admiration from the cricket fraternity in New Zealand... So he's done a great job. I don't think people envisaged he would be this good as captain - good to great, even. And if he does well and finishes off this tournament positively, he'll absolutely be one of our greatest leaders,"
"I'm very proud of what he's done and the way he's changed the way New Zealand play and are viewed from around the world, which is a good thing too." Fleming said.