Chris Silverwood appointed new England men's head coach

Silverwood, 44, has been promoted from the role of bowling coach. He succeeds Trevor Bayliss in the role, after the Australian stepped down following England's 2-2 draw in the Ashes against Australia, having guided them to their maiden ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 title earlier this year.

"We are delighted to confirm Chris as England Men’s Head Coach. We have gone through a thorough process and looked at all the options that were available to us. Chris was the standout candidate," Ashley Giles, ECB's managing director of men's cricket, said.

"I believe he is what we need to take our international teams forward. He is somebody we know well, but it is his intimate understanding of our structures and systems and his close relationships with Test captain Joe Root and white-ball captain Eoin Morgan that will help us develop our plans for the next few years.

"He has performed exceptionally well during his role as an assistant coach and has the ultimate respect of the players that have worked with him."

Other candidates for the top job included Alec Stewart and Gary Kirsten; Stewart, Surrey's director of cricket, reportedly bowed out of the race last week, citing the difficulty in striking a balance between family commitments and England's international schedule. Kirsten was also a strong candidate, having received the backing of ex-cricketers, including Michael Atherton and Lance Klusener. However, the 44-year-old Silverwood pipped them to the role, and will take over the job ahead of England's tour of New Zealand, beginning 27 October.

Silverwood, who had been working with the men's team as their fast-bowling coach since January 2018, also has a solid coaching resume to his name. In 2017, he coached Essex to the County Championship title for the first time in 25 years. He has the experience of closely interacting and working with the current set of England players, having assisted Bayliss during their World Cup triumph in July.

Speaking about his appointment, Silverwood expressed excitement, and looked forward to continuing the success of the current crop of players beginning with tours to New Zealand and South Africa.

"I am thrilled and honoured to be appointed England Head Coach," he said. "I aim to continue the great work that has been done over the past five years and build on our future, especially in the Test arena.

"I have enjoyed working with the players over the past two seasons, and developing the best crop of talent in the English game."