Ollie Pope is shutting out criticism of his performance as stand-in England captain as they look to complete a 3-0 series sweep over Sri Lanka at The Oval this week.
Deputising for injured skipper Ben Stokes, Pope has led the team to victories at Old Trafford and Lord's to leave them on the verge of a perfect red-ball summer.
Pope previously played a starring role with 239 runs in a 3-0 whitewash of West Indies, yet his individual form has dipped dramatically in the Sri Lanka series.
He has failed to make more than 17 runs in any of his four innings as captain, recording single figures on three occasions, while he has also been criticised for his use of DRS with a total of eight reviews going against him during the series.
However, Pope has revealed one major piece of advice he received from Stokes ahead of the series was to ignore outside noise and concentrate purely on the spirit within the team.
"Chatting to Stokesy before this series, when you're captain, you're going to attract a lot more attention and it's just important to block it all out and stay close with the people around you," Pope said.
"There are a lot of voices who want to have their say, a lot of past cricketers as well, and that's fine and everyone is entitled to their opinion.
"But it's important for me to keep trusting the people inside these four walls because that's going to help me get back into my best form.
"Sometimes when you have two bad games it can almost feel a lot worse than it is because of the noise which surrounds it.
"For me, it's about trying to stay as level as I can, keep trusting the noise around it, put my work in and not really overthink it."
The third Test gets under way on Friday, with England targeting a fifth straight series whitewash of the tourists. Sri Lanka's last Test win over England came in Galle in 2012, in a home series that was drawn 1-1.
Shanto left speechless by historic Bangladesh series sweep
Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto was lost for words after they claimed a historic series victory over Pakistan on day five of the second Test.
They wrapped up the 2-0 series sweep, reaching the target of 185 runs on Tuesday, having bowled Pakistan out for 172 on day four, with Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana taking nine wickets between them.
At one point, it looked like victory was out of Bangladesh's reach, at least until Liton Das inspired a stunning comeback on day three with a stand on 138.
It is the first time that Bangladesh have ever recorded a series success over Pakistan, while it was just their third Test series win on foreign soil.
And Shanto was in disbelief when they finally clinched the victory.
"We can't express feelings with words, we are really happy," said Najmul.
"I think before we came here, we're looking to win, and the way everyone did their job made me really happy."
"Our bowlers were very impressive. I hope they will do the same against India as well, which will be a very challenging series."
Meanwhile, Pakistan are now on a run of 10 Tests without a win on home soil and have lost all five of their Tests with Shan Masood as their captain.
With this defeat following a 3-0 series whitewash at the hands of Australia earlier this year, Masood was left frustrated by the continued mistakes his team were making.
"We haven't learnt our lessons," he said.
"We could have bowled them, especially after 26-6 down here, but we let them back in the game.
"I think now it's time where we've realised that we were playing good cricket in Australia and not finishing games. That's something that we really need to work on.
"You always learn from your mistakes, and you try and give people a chance, and in this regard, we are in the right direction."
McCullum replaces Mott as England's white-ball head coach
Brendon McCullum has been announced as England's new men's white-ball head coach, and will combine that role with his existing Test duties.
McCullum, who has signed a three-year contract to perform the role, replaces Australian Matthew Mott, who stepped down after this year's T20 World Cup.
The 42-year-old will oversee the next 50-over World Cup in South Africa, while also guiding the Test squad all the way through to England's next home Ashes campaign.
The ECB have described the move as part of a strategic restructure for the senior side, with McCullum officially beginning his twin tenure in January 2025.
England's interim head coach Marcus Trescothick will continue in his role for the white-ball tour of the Caribbean in November, with McCullum's first assignment a tour of India before February's Champions Trophy in Pakistan.
McCullum will become the first England men's coach since his Test predecessor, Chris Silverwood, to oversee both the red and white-ball squads.
Since taking charge of a Test side that had won one of its previous 17 Tests, McCullum has instilled a fearless brand of cricket, which has seen England win 19 of their 28 Tests since.
Under the New Zealander, England's Test team scored 4.57 runs per over on average, compared to 3.09 in their 29 Tests previously.
Having overseen a dramatic turnaround for the Test team alongside captain Ben Stokes, McCullum says he is "energised" by the prospect of signing a new contract that increases the scope of his role.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Test team, and I’m excited to extend my role to include the white-ball sides," McCullum said.
"This challenge is something I’m ready to embrace, and I’m eager to work closely with Jos [Buttler] and the team to build on the strong foundations that are already in place.
“Rob Key’s vision for the future of English cricket is something that really resonated with me. The idea of a unified coaching structure, especially with the schedule easing next year, made perfect sense.
"I’m energised by the prospect of guiding both teams and am grateful for the support from the ECB and my family as I take on these added responsibilities.
“The talent within English cricket is immense, and I’m looking forward to helping these players reach their full potential.
"My goal is to create an environment where everyone can thrive and where we can continue to compete at the highest level across all formats.”
After the Test series ends against Sri Lanka at The Oval next week, McCullum will take a short break at home in New Zealand before joining the red-ball team for their winter tour of Pakistan in October and the three-match series against New Zealand.
Bangladesh clinch historic series sweep in Pakistan
Bangladesh sealed a historic series victory in Pakistan by cruising over the finish line on day five of the second Test in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
Only bad light and rain prevented Bangladesh from wrapping up a 2-0 series success on day four after they bowled Pakistan out for 172, Hasan Mahmud and Nahid Rana taking nine wickets between them.
Having resumed at 42 without loss, the tourists saw Zakir Hasan bowled clean by Mir Hamza for 40 early on, before Shadman Islam was caught by Shan Masood for 24 five overs later.
However, Pakistan's early wickets only delayed the inevitable as Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto (38) and Mominul Haque (34) took up the mantle to push them closer to their target.
Abdullah Shafique took a great catch at short leg to account for the former while Abrar Ahmed's ball saw the latter caught by Saim Ayub, but Bangladesh were already within 30 runs of victory by that point and would not be denied.
The experienced duo of Mushfiqur Rahim (22) and Shakib Al Hasan (21) were able to wrap things up serenely for the tourists, extending Pakistan's miserable winless run on home soil to 10 Tests.
Data Debrief: Rare overseas success for Bangladesh
Bangladesh had never previously recorded a series success over Pakistan, making the calm fashion in which they batted their way to victory on Tuesday all the more impressive.
The victory was just their fourth Test win on foreign soil in the last seven years, and this is only the third Test series they have ever won on their travels.
Their only previous series triumphs on foreign soil came versus West Indies in 2009 and in Zimbabwe three years ago.
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