Master of all he surveys...
SILVERWOOD TAKES CONTROL
CHRIS Silverwood has been backed to become cricket’s version of Gareth Southgate after being handed the keys to team selection.
Southgate takes overall control of England’s football team – picking players and formulating strategy.
It brings clarity to the dressing room with players not secondguessing why they are in or out.
Silverwood should be applauded for taking responsibility.
Only Ray Illingworth in 1995 has been officially given overall charge of the England team.That did not end well as he found it difficult to relate to the younger generation of players.
Despite that short experiment, former England bowler and selector Angus Fraser, who played under Illingworth in the mid-Nineties, believes a similar set-up could work this time thanks to the characters involved and the improved support.
Fraser, Middlesex’s director of cricket, said: “I don’t think it is a bad idea. We’ve tried a few different methods, but you have to be prepared to adapt and evolve.
“The structure might have been like this previously with some coaches but it is the first time since Ray Illingworth it has officially been like this.
“Bumble [David Lloyd] saw himself as an Alex Ferguson figure, pulling the strings, when he was coach. Silverwood is now the equivalent of Gareth Southgate or Eddie Jones. They manage their teams and their environments, pick the players and make the big decisions.
“Of course in cricket there is a far greater input from the captain and that won’t change, but ultimately these guys are at the top and they make the decisions on how the team is run with the support of technical coaches and the available analysis.” Silverwood has a good relationship with both his captains and is proving a decent man-manager of players. But he is in a results-based business and there is now less room for manoeuvre if things go wrong. Having given a similar role to Stuart Law at Middlesex, Fraser thinks this move makes sense. He said: “It is probably about the personality that makes the system work. Having one man in charge can work, but it needs to be the right one.”
❑ ENGLAND batsman Dom Sibley will miss Warwickshire’s next two matches – including the home match against Essex, starting today – because of a finger fractured while fielding in the game against Notts last week.