Yorkshire CCC boss Moxon keen on English coach for top role once Bayliss exits

Bayliss has announced that he will quit as England coach when his contract expires after next year’s Ashes.

Rather than look overseas for Bayliss’s replacement, Moxon would like to see a young English coach given a chance.

There are plenty out there, including former Yorkshire players such as new England bowling coach Chris Silverwood, current Yorkshire first-team coach Andrew Gale and new Essex coach Anthony McGrath.

“Personally, I’d like to think and hope that it’s someone from within our own game who takes over from Trevor,” said Moxon, who is himself highly regarded as Yorkshire’s director of cricket.

“Hopefully, one of the younger coaches we’ve got in the country is given the opportunity, although if there isn’t anybody capable or good enough, clearly England would have to go elsewhere.

“But there’s a number of young coaches around the place at the moment, cutting their teeth, so let’s see what happens over the next two years.

“There’s the likes of Galey (Andrew Gale), Glen Chapple, and then you’ve also got people like Mark Robinson, who’s more experienced and done very well with the England women.

“There’s coaches working with the Lions, there’s Chris Silverwood – it might be right for him to take over the main job in two years – who knows? Let’s see who the bright young coaches are and take it from there.

“But the important thing is that young coaches in this country can see that there’s an opportunity to progress, and that if they do well and perform and show their credentials, that there’s a chance they can get into international cricket.

“At the end of the day, everyone needs something to strive towards.”

Bayliss, 55, has come in for criticism following the Ashes defeat, which leaves his Test record as England coach standing at: Played 38, Won 15, Drawn 5, Lost 18.

However, Bayliss has been more successful in white-ball cricket, and Moxon believes that the Australian deserves credit for clarifying his own situation.

“He’s a very honourable man, is Trevor, and if he was asked a direct question about his future, then he’s the kind of guy who will answer it honestly,” said Moxon.

“I guess in isolation it’s maybe a bit strange to some people that he’s kind of said what he’s said regarding himself, but if he’s asked directly about his future, I can see why he has.

“I guess, at the end of the day, everybody knows where they stand, and it gives England nearly two years to find a replacement.

“But you need the raw materials to work with to be a successful coach, and that has to be remembered as well.

“You can be the best coach in the world, but if batsmen keep getting themselves out for 20 or 30, or 50 or 60, you’re not going to win many County Championship games, let alone Test matches.

“I think coaching is an incredibly difficult job these days in any case because of the different skills and the mentality required for the different formats of the game; I don’t think there’s been a time, in fact, where it’s been so different.

“The white ball doesn’t deviate very much, for example, but the red ball does. The ability to bat for a day – we’ve seen it in the Ashes, we’ve seen it with Yorkshire, we’ve seen it throughout the country, there aren’t many batsmen now who have that capability to bat for a day, and it’s down to this desire to be very good at T20 cricket because that’s where all the money is, and there’s this desire now to dominate the bowler.

“Patience has gone out the window to a large extent, the ability to build an innings, and all those skills are being lost because of this drive and desire to be very good at T20.

“So, for young coaches to be coaching players to be good in all three aspects of the game, 50-over cricket included, is a huge challenge.

“It’s a huge challenge also for players to adapt – and they also have their own priorities, be they white-ball or red-ball – hence why you’re seeing different teams for white-ball and red-ball cricket.”

Attention is already turning to the next Ashes series in Australia in 2021, and Moxon agrees with the general consensus that the planning needs to start now.

“I think it’s very much horses for courses and Australia, in particular, is somewhere where you do need at least two pace bowlers,” he said.

“We do have the raw materials – there are some good young pace bowlers out there, such as Reece Topley, George Garton and Jamie Overton – and we need to make sure they are fit and firing.”