England seek balance across formats under Silverwood

The year 2019 was a mixed one for England. While their recent emphasis on white-ball cricket paid off handsomely with them securing their maiden ICC Men's Cricket World Cup title at home, their form in Test cricket slumped. They lost a three-match series in West Indies 1-2 at the start of the year and later, for the first time since 2001, were unable to take back the Ashes urn in a home series, with Australia retaining the trophy after a 2-2 draw.

Now, with the appointment of Chris Silverwood, England aim to redress the balance between Tests and the shorter formats. Giles also hopes that the new coach is able to provide more support to Joe Root as Test captain so that he can focus more on his batting.

"We don’t want a coach who will come in and smother white-ball cricket and Eoin [Morgan]," Giles told reporters, explaining the role of the new coach. "But we want someone who is going to give Joe more support, put more structure in place around him and together form the DNA of what a Test team looks like, which I don’t think we’ve quite got to yet."

"That structure and support needs to go and allow Joe to average 50 with the bat, score hundreds and win Test matches. When it comes down to nuts and bolts that’s the most important thing because it takes the pressure off everyone."

Giles indicated that a rigorous process had gone in appointing the new coach. He expressed confidence in Silverwood's ability to bring Test cricket back into focus, and, on a side note, was also pleased that the pick had come from within the national borders. Silverwood, after all, is only the second homegrown coach of the England men's team in this century.

"It took me a couple of long days and sleepless nights but that’s the way it should be. [Silverwood] is a good man with solid values and I’m pleased the right man is English. It helps break that cycle we were in, where we couldn’t employ an English coach. And I think we’ve got a good one here."