Harry Brook: England coach Brendon McCullum defends white-ball captain after New Zealand controversy

England head coach Brendon McCullum has praised the way Harry Brook has dealt with recent controversy but admits his white-ball captain is a "work in progress" away from the cricket field.

Brook was fined £30,000 by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and warned about his conduct after being struck by a nightclub bouncer in Wellington the night before a one-day international against New Zealand in November, a game England lost by two wickets as they slumped to a 3-0 series defeat.

Brook's indiscretion only became public knowledge in January as England slumped to a 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia, at which point he had insisted he had been alone on the night out.

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Over the weekend he admitted he had lied to protect his team-mates Jacob Bethell and Josh Tongue, who were out with him in New Zealand and are now being investigated by The Cricket Regulator, a body independent from the ECB that has the power to bring disrepute charges.

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Brook retained the captaincy of England's limited-overs sides despite the incident and impressed on their tour of Sri Lanka by guiding his side to a 2-1 ODI series victory and a 3-0 clean sweep in T20s.

Speaking after England had sealed victory on Tuesday in the final match of the series, McCullum said: "I thought Brooky was sensational with his tactics throughout both series.

"He's had a hard time of late off the field, but he's a tough lad to be able to put that aside and still lead these boys in the manner that he did, and show the tactical nous that he has as a cricketer was outstanding.

"I do sometimes think that people think that Brooky's not that clever. I couldn't disagree with that more. He wears his intelligence lightly. He's got a very good tactical cricket brain.

"He's a work in progress off the field. He's not alone with that, and that's our job to help shepherd him through. But on the field, he's certainly excelling at the moment."

England begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Nepal on Sunday, with Bethell and Tongue also part of the squad going to India.

McCullum's future has also been a topic of speculation following England's hugely disappointing Ashes display, with management's handling of the Brook saga also coming under scrutiny.

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He added: "He's a tough lad, Brooky. He put his hand up, tried to protect his boys as well. Obviously, we'd dealt with everything in the manner that we thought was required internally, and he was disciplined and the boys were disciplined, and obviously, very stern words spoken.

"But from there, it's been about trying to support these lads. And Brooky's been absolutely brilliant to be able to own up to things, put his hand up, and still cross the line into the arena and not lose his confidence or be distracted by things going on."

McCullum also reiterated the importance of looking out for his players' mental health amid the relentless schedule international cricketers face, particularly the likes of Brook who feature across all formats.

"Cricket is such a unique game because it's 12 months of the year," McCullum said. "It's not like any other game, you have to be up for 12 months year on year on year.

"It can be challenging mentally for a lot of guys, and cricket's got a history of issues in that space. So, our job as leaders and our job at English cricket is to make sure we look after these boys.

"Yes, discipline in times where mistakes have been made, but from now, it's about looking after them and protecting them and trying to make sure that we put space between those times."

England's T20 World Cup fixtures (first round)

All times UK and Ireland; all games live on Sky Sports

• vs Nepal (Sunday February 8) - Mumbai (9.30am)
• vs West Indies (Wednesday February 11) - Mumbai (1.30pm)
• vs Scotland (Saturday February 14) - Kolkata (9.30am)
• vs Italy (Monday February 16) - Kolkata (9.30am)

Watch every match of the Men's T20 World Cup live from February 7 to March 8 on Sky Sports. Get Sky Sports or stream contract-free with NOW.