England are on the verge of surrendering the series at the earliest possible opportunity after losing the first two Tests in fewer than six days of cricket.

In the first Test in Perth, the tourists were bowled out for 172 and 164, including collapses of seven wickets for 78 runs and 9-99. In the second innings in Perth, England lost 6-80.

“Ultimately, you can’t afford to flinch when you come down here,” said McCullum.

“This is not a country to start doubting yourself or to walk away from the challenge.

“You come to this country and have a glass jaw, you have no chance. You have to be strong, tough, and you have to get on with it.”

The loss in Brisbane extended England’s winless run in Australia to 17 matches, including 15 defeats, dating back to 2011.

Stokes’ team must be victorious in all three of the remaining Tests, beginning in Adelaide on 17 December (23:30 GMT, 16 December), if they are to win the urn for the first time since 2015.

England will spend part of the gap between Tests on a break in the resort town of Noosa, on the Sunshine Coast. They will then train for three days in the run-up to the match in Adelaide.

Decisions around preparation and tour games have come under scrutiny on the tour. England played only one match, against England Lions, before the series began, then opted to send none of the players from the first Test to a Lions game against the Prime Minister’s XI in the run-up to the second Test.