Cook, Flower look safe but Gooch says rebuilding likely

SYDNEY, (Reuters) – England coach Andy Flower and captain Alastair Cook appear likely to retain their jobs despite the disastrous Ashes tour of Australia but batting coach Graham Gooch believes some sort of rebuilding process is inevitable.

Flower, whose contract is up at the end of the tour, and Cook received the backing of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chief David Collier to retain their roles despite another miserable day which made a 5-0 series defeat highly likely.

“We need that experience,” Collier told Sky TV.

“When you got through a transitional period you need somebody with knowledge, somebody who knows our system, somebody who works with all of our key coaches. Andy has all of those attributes and more.

“Alastair fully deserves our support,” he added. “People do grow into the job. Captains mature, players mature. We were convinced he was the right man at the time and we’re still convinced today.

“We look forward to both Alastair and Andy leading us to success in the future.”