Brendon McCullum hoping injury-hit England can benefit from 'tough lesson' in India

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Brendon McCullum has defended England's preparation during their unsuccessful tour of India and hopes he has done enough to protect his players ahead of the Champions Trophy.

England slumped to a 3-0 whitewash in their ODI series against India, having also lost four of the sides' five T20Is prior to that.

The team were criticised for their lack of training between 50-over matches, with former England captain Kevin Pietersen questioning their preparation.

But coach McCullum explained injuries forced England to alter their approach, needing to ensure the team are in good shape ahead of the upcoming Champions Trophy in Pakistan.

England start their campaign against Australia on February 22.

"Guys have come from a lot of cricket and keeping guys fresh is just as important, especially when you have injuries," said McCullum.

"We've done lots of training. We have had injuries in the camp, so we've backed guys off a little bit to make sure we had a fit team.

"We have three training sessions in Pakistan [before the tournament starts].

"Hopefully, in Pakistan, we will have a fully fit squad to pick from and we look forward to a fresh challenge.

"It's been a tough lesson, but hopefully it's been great preparation for the tournament."

McCullum, who took over as England's limited-overs coach at the start of the year, is without Jacob Bethell, while Ben Duckett is now a doubt for the opener against Australia.

However, McCullum said he is confident Jamie Smith, Bryson Carse, Jamie Overton and Jofra Archer will overcome their respective knocks in time.