"Just go get him" - Michael Vaughan wants England to rope in Justin Langer as head coach
Former England captain Michael Vaughan has urged his national team to go for Justin Langer as coach should Cricket Australia not renew the latter's contract. Vaughan termed the tenure of Chris Silverwood as England coach as one that has become too comfortable.
England's fallout from their 4-0 Ashes loss includes Ashley Giles and Silverwood stepping down as managing director and coach, respectively. Hence, Joe Root and co. might have to manage with an interim coach for their upcoming West Indies Tests.
Justin Langer has been confirmed as the new Head Coach of the Australian Men's Cricket Team cricketa.us/2HJughx https://t.co/3UHHG9zrNv
In his column for The Telegraph, Vaughan believes Langer seems well-suited as England's head coach, having done a commendable job for Australia. The 47-year old also feels Root needs a strong personality, writing:
"Gary Kirsten would be a great candidate as well, but if you want one person to come in with a huge point to prove, then it is Langer. He is an Ashes winner, T20 World Cup winner, and knows everything about playing in Australia. Just go get him. This England Test team needs some tough love. Joe Root needs a forceful coach next to him too."
Langer, whose contract with Australia will expire in mid-2022, seems unlikely to carry on. A few days ago, the West Australian had an alleged rift with Cricket Australia over needing to re-apply for the head coach position, which the governing body later denied. Meanwhile, former players have strongly backed Langer to continue.
"Not a great look for another English coach to have failed" - Michael Vaughan
Although Michael Vaughan said that Silverwood underwent a tough time amid the bio-bubbles, the 47-year old blamed him for England's Ashes defeat. Ruing the lack of doing the basics consistently, he wrote:
"Of all the England's coaches, Chris Silverwood was given a terrible hand in Covid times with restrictions on all the players. Testing every other day and bubbles must have been hard, but ultimately he made some glaring mistakes this winter. The basics were not applied, and that is the responsibility of the coaching team. It is not a great look for another English coach to have failed."
The cricketer-turned-commentator also reckoned that England might require Langer to be a disciplinarian, referring to the drinking incident in Australia recently.
"At first, England might need the old Langer for a while, who is in total charge and a disciplinarian. England will deny there was a drinking culture in Australia, and they were not too soft, but I don't care about that because clearly something was wrong."
Ashes retained on home soil! 🇦🇺
An incredible six-wicket haul from home town hero Scott Boland led our Aussie men to victory by an innings and 14 runs #Ashes https://t.co/ZFuieXIM7r
It remains to be seen what Cricket Australia decides for Langer. Meanwhile, Australia's Test captain Pat Cummins declined to comment on the 51-year old's future with the team.