Bayliss Leaves England In Mixed Fettle

Derek Pringle reckons the departing England coach can bask in winning the World Cup, but dismal away form in Tests will leave some.

- Derek Pringle

It seems to be traditional that when an England cricket coach moves on he unburdens himself about the state of the game hereabouts – something Trevor Bayliss has done in a lengthy interview with Cricinfo.

Before his observations on English cricket, the first thing to say is that Bayliss leaves his post with mission accomplished. We were told at his appointment in 2015 that he was chosen primarily to overhaul England’s one-day teams and win a World Cup, something he and Eoin Morgan achieved this summer after beating New Zealand in a gripping final at Lord's.

But like the quantity theory of anything, the boon in one area has led to a decline in the other and while Australia and India have both been beaten in Test series at home during his tenure, England’s away form in Tests has been execrable and there has been a slump in the quality of batsmanship in that format. Indeed, the recent drawn series against the Aussies also represents a dip in standards, being the first time since 2001 that the home side has not won.

Pinning a coach down and deciding how much credit or debit to apportion them is always tricky but doubly so with Bayliss. A bit like those old economic models of capitalism, he was largely non-interventionist as a coach. The best solution to a problem for him was one both sought and provided by the players. His role was just to facilitate and guide.

It is a grown-up, non-prescriptive way of coaching but it risks the impression that you don’t seem to be doing much for the large salary except schlepp around England and the world on a never ending loop of white and red-ball international matches. Keeping everyone guessing behind those impenetrable shades and beneath that wide-brimmed sunhat was something he made an art of.