Watch Trevor Bayliss amble over for a chat and it is practically impossible to tell whether his England side have just won or lost. It is not even that easy to be certain of the result when he starts talking. Like England’s rugby coach, Bayliss is an Australian in his 50s who played most of his sport in Sydney but there the similarities seem to end. Bayliss is the most phlegmatic of men, who seems to foster loyalty naturally and who actively craves anonymity.
But even he cannot completely disguise a certain excitement about England’s Test team after a series-winning 2-0 lead was secured over Sri Lanka in Pallekele on Sunday. “Apart from one or two this group are fairly close in age, good mates and all seem to be responding to Joe’s call. Off the field it’s starting to get there. Obviously there’s a few more guys from the one-day side in the Test team with Rashid and Buttler but it’s starting to get a feelgood feel just like that one-day team. Hopefully those results continue.”
As captain, Joe Root may not yet have the all-embracing authority of Eoin Morgan in white-ball cricket but here the signs are also encouraging for Bayliss. “I still think he’ll improve even more. Like any young captain he’d probably do a few things differently but the more you have these types of wins in these conditions, that just gives the captain confidence and the players’ confidence in the captain, that he can make the right call. He’ll just get better and better.”
The changes of personnel in the team have obviously helped. Finally new players have come in and contributed from the start, spectacularly so in the case of Ben Foakes. There are not so many holes in the team. “There’s no secret we’ve been looking for two or three, maybe even four positions to get nailed down over the last few years,” said Bayliss.
Quick guide
England in Sri Lanka: Key Test stats so far
Most runs Ben Foakes, pictured (228)
Most centuries Ben Foakes, Keaton Jennings, Joe Root (1)
Highest score Keaton Jennings (146no)
Best average Ben Foakes (76)
Best strike-rate Joe Root (75.21)
Most wickets Moeen Ali (14)
Most maidens Jack Leach (10)
Five-fors Jack Leach (1)
Best economy James Anderson (2.56)
“I think on this particular tour we’ve probably seen two or three of those positions getting nailed down. I think of the job that Burns and Foakes have done in their first two Tests – it looks like they’re playing their 30th or 40th Tests. Their calmness has been outstanding.”
The Surrey pair have not only played well but they have also been remarkably relaxed in their new environment. Foakes has been constantly held up as an example of the value of Lions’ tours, where he has broadened his experience in foreign conditions over the last three years.
Meanwhile Burns, who has played one match for the Lions in his life, provides a welcome reminder that is also possible to reach the team via excellence in County Championship cricket rather than impressing ECB coaches with the Lions. This has been the route of some of our best and grittiest cricketers in recent times, such as Andrew Strauss and Paul Collingwood.
Bayliss was also keen to praise those who have not been playing in the Test matches. On his bench he has had three players who share 208 Test caps; Stuart Broad has the bulk of them (123), Jonny Bairstow 59 and Chris Woakes 26. Bayliss focused on the first two, who have been ever-present in England Test teams in recent times.
“One of the great things that hasn’t been spoken about much over the last two games is Stuart Broad and Jonny Bairstow missing out but the way they’ve taken it has been absolutely fantastic. It makes the feeling around the squad so much better. They are very much part of the squad and they realise that. They know that we are picking what we think is the best team to win each match and they’ve taken that on the chin. It’s been great.” In fact, Bairstow was one of four England players who spent some of Monday visiting and learning about the project of clearing landmines in the north of the country, a sure way to gain a sense of perspective about being omitted from a Test team.
So there is much to be cheerful about, so much, in fact, that Bayliss was asked whether he would consider prolonging his stay with England, which is due to end in September next year, given how the red-ball team is advancing. The mere question was a sign of progress since it was not so long ago that many decided that Bayliss was somehow a brilliant white-ball coach and a useless red-ball one.
“No,” said Bayliss promptly. “Look, I’ve always been of the opinion, even before I started the England job, that four to five years is a good life for a coach with one team. Hopefully you take it forward and then it’s up to a new voice, maybe someone of a different direction, to take the team forward. That opinion is not going to change.”
Was he sure that he wouldn’t like another crack at India? “I look forward to watching the next [England] series in India on TV.”