Shortly after Australian batsman Adam Voges had creamed a drive through the covers to seal a seven-wicket win for his side, McCullum led the New Zealand team off the field with his head half bowed and just a polite wave to the smattering of fans who had remained at the ground.
There was no guard of honour from the Australian team - had McCullum requested it that way? There was no choking back emotion during his farewell speech, either.
Perhaps it would have been different if his team had not been so comprehensively outplayed.
McCullum did his part on the field with an audacious innings on the opening day. With his side teetering at 32 for three, the 34-year-old strolled to the crease and whacked the fastest test century in history - it took just 54 balls.
He took a huge gamble. And his fearless approach at the batting crease during his 14-year career certainly polarised opinion.
He could have perhaps eked out more runs had he backed his defence a little more. But that is not how he played his cricket and not why so many fans fell back in love with the game.
McCullum could be frustrating but also exhilarating to watch. But the excitement felt watching him perform more than compensated for the pang of disappointment he delivered in small but regular doses.
We watched, and that will be his most enduring legacy.
