Langer out of England head coach race amid buzz of Stokes as new captain

Justin Langer’s bid to become England
men’s cricket team’s head coach ended without any success as the England and Wales Cricket
Board (ECB) reportedly put his application into a container. The ECB is looking
for former head coach Chris Silverwood’s replacement who stepped down after
England’s 4-0 Ashes drubbing at the hands of Australia Down Under in January this year.

Also Read: Ben Stokes confident of former captain Joe Root’s stellar form with the bat

Langer, a former Australia opener who
later coached the national team, was heavily linked with the top job. Langer quit his
Australia job after the 4-0 Ashes series win over England.

According to a Metro report, Langer was keen to coach England. ECB was also interested in him as the administration
feels a ‘strongman head coach like Langer’ would have been a better fit had Joe
Root remained skipper, with the 31-year-old needing ‘back-up from a forceful
personality behind him’.

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However, Ben Stokes, who is the strongest
contender for the England captaincy, has reportedly said he “need a coach who is good tactically
and a facilitator behind the scenes”.

Earlier this month, former England
bowler Derek Pringle expressed his concerns over Langer being named as
Silverwood’s replacement. “There was a time when English cricket slavishly
sought Australian know-how but I’m not sure the desire has endured,”
Pringle wrote in a column for the Metro.

Also Read: ECB appoints Rob Key as managing director to transform crisis-hit England

“Which is why I think Justin
Langer, tipped by some to be the next England head coach, is unlikely to get
that job. Langer was a fine, gutsy player but if the current Aussie team felt
his coaching style too intense, he will not be a good fit for England, despite
calls from some that they need tough love.

“We see this whole thing going on
in Australia where it doesn’t look like the players have a great deal of time
for Justin Langer,” Key told Sky Sports. “He’s a bit of hard
taskmaster, but they’ve come back from sandpaper-gate, they’ve won the T20
World Cup and they’ve won the Ashes easily.”

Also Read: ‘Not in possession of England shirt’: Stuart Broad on question of Test captaincy

However, according to a new report from
the Telegraph, Langer is now “out of the running for the job”, with England
looking to split the head coach role between red and white-ball cricket. The report
also states that England have “reservations over whether he would work well
with Ben Stokes”, with the all-rounder set to be named the new Test captain.