Ed Smith back in England fold as he puts media career on hold for selector’s role

Ed Smith, the journalist and former England batsman, is set to be announced this week as the national selector.

Smith has come from left field and appears to have beaten Andy Flower to the top job, while Mick Newell, the Nottinghamshire director of cricket, also came close. Confirmation is expected on Friday and Smith was unable to comment when contacted by Standard Sport.

Smith has had a varied career. He played three Tests in 2003, captained Middlesex and then retired, aged 31. He has written books and worked as a journalist and commentator on the game and beyond, while also dabbling in academia. He commentated for Test Match Special on this winter’s Ashes.

The choice of Smith, 40, would appear to fit with the director of cricket Andrew Strauss and the ECB’s desire to redefine the role of selector. Working under the chief selector will be one other independent selector, meaning those affiliated with a county must cut their ties to take the role, unlike in previous regimes. Newell is understood to be unsure over whether he would leave Notts if offered the secondary role.

The pair will be supported by a network of around a dozen scouts, meaning the net is cast wider over the county game. The identity of those individuals is unlikely to be announced this week but will include first-class umpires and ECB coaches (such as Graham Thorpe). Earlier this month, Standard Sport columnist and former England batsman James Taylor expressed interest in such a role and seems an ideal candidate.

The expectation is that under Strauss’s new system, the national selector will be a more media-savvy, front-facing role with a greater profile, perhaps in part to take the heat off coach Trevor Bayliss, whose knowledge of county cricket is rudimentary. As is prevalent in the game at large, data and analytics are expected to come into selection ever more, and Smith’s outsider’s perspective appears in keeping with this.

Cricket Australia, meanwhile, have moved to end speculation that they will announce Justin Langer as their new head coach this week — before their root and branch review into the culture of the sport has even begun.

Darren Lehmann left the role last month in the wake of the ruinous sandpaper scandal, which triggered the review. Reports in Australia suggested Langer would have his appointment ratified on Friday, but CA said the process for finding a new coach would be discussed instead. Langer played 105 Tests, is coach of his native Western Australia and Perth Scorchers and had been considered for a consultancy role with Somerset this summer.