Brendon McCullum has apologised for the flatlining results that led to his removal as England’s Test head coach and promised to collaborate with his successor as leadership of the men’s national teams is once again split.

Preparing for the first one-day international on Tuesday against India – a series that remains under his remit as head coach of the men’s white-ball sides – McCullum showed no resentment regarding what he called “the tap on the shoulder”.

Instead came acknowledgment that 14 wins and 16 defeats in Test cricket since the end of the 2023 Ashes – and seven losses from the past nine, including a 4-1 hammering in Australia – created the vacancy that has led to Andy Flower, Simon Katich, Rahul Dravid and Stephen Fleming now being under consideration.

McCullum said: “I fully respect the decision. We’re in a results business and fundamentally our results weren’t good enough. It’s time for someone else to have a go.

“Over the course of 20-odd years in this sport, the last four [as Test head coach] have been possibly the biggest highlight I’ve had. I thank everyone for all their commitment and investment in what we’ve tried to do. We just weren’t quite able to win those big series against India and Australia – the two marquee series.

“If results aren’t there, you have to take accountability for it. I have no problem doing that. I’ve loved my time. We just weren’t able to get the results and for that I guess I can only say sorry.”

With just over a month to go until the first Test against Pakistan at Headingley, there is precious little time for a new red‑ball head coach to be appointed. But Rob Key, the team director, who appears fortunate to have been entrusted with making another appointment, is already fielding calls from interested parties.

How the new dynamic works in practice will be critical, with a return to separate coaching structures (and potentially captains) giving rise to the possibility of conflicting messages, differing dressing‑room cultures and the teams vying for resources – including multiformat players – in a cramped schedule.

McCullum said: “Once the new [Test] coach comes into play, we will sit down and unpick a lot of this stuff. You’ve got different staff, different players, schedules are different, obviously captaincy discussions. There is a lot to unpack.

“There will be lots of robust conversations and I have no problem working through those things. But it’s about what is right for English cricket. How do we give English cricket the best opportunity to get to the levels it wants across all three formats of the game? I’m sure that will be a collaborative process and I look forward to it.”

The 44-year-old McCullum said he has learned a lot since he took over the Test head coach role in 2022, but pushed back on the notion his methods were too simplistic or one-dimensional. The term “Bazball” – which quickly became shorthand for their aggressive approach – is one he continues to reject. “It was never about that,” he said. “It was never about scoring rates or playing recklessly. It was never about trying to be cavalier in our way of going about things.

“My method is about trying to build an environment and build a culture where people are able to be the best versions of themselves, so that they can handle the pressure moments when they’re at their highest. We didn’t always get it right and I accept that. But the motivation for it was sound.”

Regarding his remaining white‑ball role, McCullum pointed to the T20 side’s rise to No 1 in the rankings as evidence of his increasingly fruitful relationship with the captain, Harry Brook, but admitted the 50-over side is in need of development as he sees out a contract that runs until the next 50-over World Cup in late 2027.