Under-pressure Brendon McCullum refuses to "rip up the script completely" with England but would be willing to evolve his methods after their 4-1 Ashes loss.

Australia earned a five-wicket victory on day five of the final Test, concluding a dismal tour for England, who lost the Ashes within 11 days of the series beginning.

England scored 726 runs at the SCG, the most by a losing side in an Ashes Test since 1948.

But McCullum, along with captain Ben Stokes and director Rob Key, have had their positions called into question after the disappointing results down under.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on Thursday that a review into the defeat was under way.

McCullum's current contract runs through to the end of the 2027 Ashes at home, and he is keen to remain head coach, though noted he does not want to sacrifice his front-footed approach.

"It is not about ripping up our script completely," he told Sky Sports. "From when we took over to where we are now, we are a better cricket team.

"I take offence to [any suggestion I don't want to evolve]. I am not against evolution; I welcome it. I am not rigid in my beliefs, but I have conviction in my methods.

Australia win the fifth and final Ashes Test by five wickets. pic.twitter.com/tI2I80cdFS

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) January 8, 2026

"That doesn't mean you are blind to progress, but to throw everything out that has worked in pursuit of something completely unknown doesn't make any sense.

"I am keen to carry on in the role. Those decisions ultimately aren't up to me, but the lessons we will digest from this tour and what we have built, it would be a shame to rip that up and chase something no one knows whether it will be successful.

"If we stay true to what we believe in, we give ourselves a good opportunity to progress as a team over the next few years. In this series, we have been pretty poor in the key moments, so it was a real missed opportunity."

England's two-day four-wicket victory on Boxing Day was their first in Australia in nearly 15 years and ensured they avoided a 5-0 whitewash.

However, the defeat in Sydney was their 14th in their last 28 Test matches, going back to 2023-24 against India.