England’s bowling coach Chris Silverwood has been named the head coach of the men’s team replacing Australia’s Trevor Bayliss, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced on Monday.

British media had reported last week that former India and South Africa coach Gary Kirsten had emerged as the leading contender to take over, although the 44-year-old Silverwood was also in the reckoning.

“We are delighted to confirm Chris as England men’s head coach. We have gone through a thorough process and looked at all the options that were available to us. Chris was the standout candidate,” England’s director of cricket Ashley Giles said in a statement.

“He is what we need to take our international teams forward. He’s somebody we know well, but it is his intimate understanding of our structures and systems and his close relationships with test captain Joe Root and white-ball captain Eoin Morgan that will help us develop our plans for the next few years,” he added.

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Silverwood is excited to get started in his new role.

"There is a tremendous amount of talent coming through, and there is enormous potential for growth," said Silverwood. "The hard work starts now, and I am confident we can make a positive impact during our winter tours of New Zealand and South Africa."

England won the 50-over World Cup in July for the first time but failed to wrest back the Ashes from Australia, who retained the urn after a 2-2 draw.