England's coach hunt has been on ever since the team won its first-ever World Cup in July and all hands now seem to be pointing at former South African cricketer Gary Kirsten. Gary Kirsten, who was India's head coach during their World Cup win in 2011 and was also instrumental in South Africa's rise to the number one spot in the Test rankings, had reportedly denied wanting the job of England's coach. However, a turn in fortunes for Gary Kirsten after he was sacked as the coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad meant he will soon be in the hunt for a new job. Many former cricketers voiced their opinions for Gary Kirsten to be the 'ideal' coach for England including the likes of Lance Klusener, Michael Atherton and many more. 

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Gary Kirsten to be England coach?

With Trevor Bayliss departing from the England side after four years, the World Cup winners have struggled to find a suitable replacement for the position of head coach. In addition to this, the team's performance in the longer formats of the game have been inconsistent, with their recent debacle coming in the recently concluded Ashes, as they failed to win the urn. Former South African all-rounder Lance Klusener has revealed that he thinks Gary Kirsten is the right man for the job as he brings with him loads of experience as he has coached many teams in big T20 leagues around the world. In addition to this, Lance Klusener said that he had the chance to play with Gary Kirsten and hence he knew what the former Sunrisers Hyderabad coach could bring to the table. Former England cricketer Michael Atherton too threw his weight behind Gary Kirsten and said that there was no coach who could match Gary Kirsten's CV and that his experience of leading sides to the top gave him an upper hand against other candidates for the role of England's coach. 

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Trevor Bayliss' successful coaching stint with England

Trevor Bayliss's career as a player left something to be desired but he definitely achieved greatness and success as a coach. During his coaching stint, the 56-year-old has led England to their maiden World Cup triumph this year. Under Bayliss' guidance, England had also reached the finals of ICC World T20 2016 in India. Trevor Bayliss had also coached the Sri Lankan team between 2007 and 2011. The islanders had finished as the runners-up in the 2011 World Cup under his tenure. Apart from international cricket, the cricketer-turned-coach has found success in franchise cricket as well. He was the head coach of Kolkata Knight Riders when they had won their two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014 respectively. He was also the coach of BBL side Sydney Sixers when they had won the BBL title in 2011/12 season and also went on to win the CLT20 title in the same year.

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