England coach Silverwood slammed as “out of his depth” after Ashes nightmare

England head coach Chris Silverwood has come under fire after his side’s series defeat to Australia in the Ashes

Video Loading

Video Unavailable

The video will auto-play soon8Cancel

Play now

Root accepts England need wholesale changes after Ashes defeat

Former England batter Rob Key believes Chris Silverwood is “out of his depth” in his dual role as head coach and national selector.

Silverwood has been head coach for two years, but became responsible for squad selections back in April when Ed Smith’s role was made redundant.

Key feels the move put Silverwood “in a position he is just not capable of” and named Ricky Ponting, Mahela Jayawardene, Gary Kirsten and Stephen Fleming as coaches he “would love to see” work with captain Joe Root.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Key said: “In interviews, with decisions and everything that has happened, he looks so out of his depth.

“I hope he got paid well! When Ashley Giles turned round to him and said, ‘I am getting rid of the national selector, you are now in charge of everything’, I hope that he got paid well!

“It put him in a position he is just not capable of and I don’t know many coaches that would have been.

“You probably needed one of the most astute, one of the blokes with the most amount of credibility, who knew more about Test cricket, in particular, than anyone else.

“The captain, as well, needed help, was crying out for help, whether he was saying it himself or not it was clearly obvious that Joe Root needed help and I don’t think Chris Silverwood has been that man at any stage.

“Some of this did happen when Ed Smith was a selector, don’t get me wrong, but he [Silverwood] is just so out of his depth.

“With a coach, it’s about what a captain needs. Eoin Morgan is fine with a Silverwood because Morgan is brilliant leader.

“I would love to see how Root would get on with a Ricky Ponting, a Mahela Jayawardene, a Gary Kirsten, a Stephen Fleming. Someone who knows the game inside out.”