Brendon McCullum has stated his confidence in Zak Crawley, calling him “a rare talent” amidst the England opener’s ongoing struggles at the top of the order.

Crawley put up scores of 6 and 25 against New Zealand in the third Test at Headingley, finishing the three-match series with 87 runs at an average of 14.50 and a high score of 43.

Speaking to Sky Sports after England wrapped up a seven-wicket win over the Black Caps at Headingley, England Test head coach McCullum praised Crawley’s ability while stating that the 24-year-old is “never going to be a consistent type of cricketer”.

“To me he’s a rare talent and I don’t think there’s too many people in world cricket that can play like he does,” McCullum said.

“When I first came in and saw him play in the nets and watched some of his old innings and some of the footage to get an understanding of him as a player, it pretty quickly stood out that he’s got something other players don’t have.

“So my message was: ‘There’s 10,000 players out there that can play the other way. There’s only a handful that can play like you do. So go and be the best version of yourself’. And I’ll keep trying to encourage him to do that.

“And the other thing is to chase great moments. He’s never going to be a consistent type of cricketer. He’s that dynamic that he’s not going to be consistent. But when he has his day, he’s going to win matches. And we’ve just got to make sure he’s courageous enough to keep stepping up even if things haven’t necessarily gone that well. But I’ve got confidence in him for sure.”

England’s next Test is against India, beginning this Friday at Edgbaston.