England Test team coaching role would be a lovely project, says Gary Kirsten

Australia handed resounding defeats to England in the first three Tests of the five-match series, and retained the Ashes with a 3-0 lead. The hosts completely outplayed England in all fields, and the England coach, Chris Silverwood's coaching job is on the line after losing the coveted Ashes series. 

Meanwhile, former India and South Africa coach, Gary Kirsten has declared his interest in becoming the head coach of England's Test team. The former South Africa cricketer stated that coaching England in the longest format will be a lovely project.

"Your Test side has battled for a while but it would be a really lovely project to get that going. I think it's a great project for someone to come in and take that Test side on. There's a lot that needs to be put in place to build this Test team out," Kirsten told the I newspaper.

"Listen, it [the England job] is always a consideration because it’s a tremendous honour,” he added.

Kirsten had a stellar career as a coach, having guided India to World Cup victory in 2011. The southpaw then coached South Africa from 2011 to 2013. The former South Africa cricketer had applied for the England coaching role in 2015 and 2019, but he was overlooked by the England Cricket Board. After 2013, Kirsten had coached various T20 teams including Royal Challengers Bangalore, Hobart Hurricanes and Durban Heat. In 2019, Kirsten was one of the favourites to take over from Trevor Bayliss as England head coach, however, Chris Silverwood was prefered over the South African.

While expressing his interest to take up England's Test coach role, Kirsten backed off from coaching the Three Lions in all three formats.

“I’ve walked this journey twice now and I’ve always made it clear that I would never commit to doing all formats. And when international cricket boards get their head around the fact that they need to split coaching roles, then it becomes a consideration.

“Working with a Test side, or working with an ODI side is great. Listen, the England ODI side is set-up, you’re the best ODI side in the world at the moment. It’s a project that has been well-thought-out. You’ve got consistency in the players that have been picked,” he stated.