England white-ball head coach Brendon McCullum has encouraged newly appointed specialist mentor Kevin Pietersen to privately challenge him on strategic improvements as the legendary batter begins his role ahead of the Sri Lanka series.

Pietersen, who scored 13,797 international runs across 277 matches for England between 2004 and 2014, steps into the mentorship role through the 2027 ODI World Cup. His tenure kicks off with the home white-ball series against Sri Lanka, starting with the opening T20I in Southampton.