THE GOOGLY: Trevor Bayliss is being harsh on himself... he deserves at least 7.5 out of 10

HUW TURBERVILL AT THE OVAL: The Aussie departs following the conclusion of the Ashes having guided England to the World Cup and a T20 final, but has been harsh on himself ahead of his exit

Trevor Bayliss has given himself 5/10 for his four years as England coach. He's being harsh. It should be 7.5: nine for limited-overs (after all, England did become 50-over world champions this summer!) and six for Tests. The trouble is a lot of us love Test cricket a bit more than the white-ball stuff, and after a dream start in the summer of 2015, it has been a period of frustration.

During his reign, England have won 26 Tests and lost 25, which is simply not good enough considering the resources they have.

Being an England supporter since 2015 has been a bit like being a Newcastle United fan when Kevin Keegan was in his first spell as manager: it's been 'Attack! Attack! Attack!' Or, if you don't like football, how about Jimmy White and snooker – wonderful aggression, weak safety. 

Bayliss says he likes two of his top three to be attacking. Joe Root said at Barbados last winter: "You don't win games by batting long periods of time, you win games by scoring big runs." It is fair to say this gung-ho approach has not been a success of late – England last topped 400 in their first innings in 2017. It has been irritating to watch. Ollie Pope seems to be the next cab off the rank, as opposed to a less cavalier batsman like Sam Northeast.

Bayliss was hired by Andrew Strauss for his limited-overs expertise of course, so it should come as no great surprise that we seem to have taken our eye off the ball in Test cricket: with the first back-to-back Ashes defeats for 18 years.

Ashley Giles, the successor to Strauss, has suggested he is looking for one head coach for all formats to replace Bayliss, with separate specialist assistants for Tests, 50-over and T20. 

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Isn't there a danger that we have a repeat of the last four years – too much to do for one man (or woman), too many balls to juggle? With overseas candidates apparently reluctant to commit to such a '365' gig, how about Stephen Fleming or Gary Kirsten for the white ball, and Nasser Hussain or Ricky Ponting for Tests? People will say Hussain won't leave Sky, but the challenge would intrigue him I believe. 

Alec Stewart's name has also been mentioned. The contrast with Hussain as England captains was marked. Hussain accommodated characters who needed a bit of managing like Andrew Caddick, and Phil Tufnell, Stewart less so.

I wonder where Bayliss would place himself in the ranks of England coaches.

In first place is a toss-up between Duncan Fletcher (1999-2007) and Andy Flower (2009-14). The former achieved amazing things in tandem with Hussain and then Michael Vaughan. A first series win over West Indies in 31 years in 2000, triumphs in Pakistan and Sri Lanka that winter that qualify as one of England's greatest winters ever, then that unforgettable 2005 Ashes victory. 

I always felt Fletcher did not receive the acclaim he deserved because he was not chummier with the media. Flower took the ball and ran with it, taking England to No.1 in the Test rankings, with Strauss as skipper.

^{Alec Stewart has been talked about as a possible future England coach}

Perhaps Bayliss would rank alongside Micky Stewart (1986-92) and David 'Bumble' Lloyd (1996-99). Stewart Snr's CV consisted of Ashes highs and lows – the wonderful all-conquering winter of 1986/87, with Mike Gatting as captain; and the far-less successful expedition four years later under Gooch, when he is said too have become a bit more hands-on.

Lloyd presided over fine series win in New Zealand (1996/97) and at home to South Africa (1998). He brought tremendous knowledge and passion to the role, although that boiled over a few times when he cast aspersions on Muttiah Muralitharan's bowling action, and insisted England 'flippin' murdered' Zimbabwe in the drawn series that same winter.

Keith Fletcher was never given the autonomy to be a success, with the spectre of Ray Illingworth as supremo shadowing his every move, while Peter Moores (2007-09 and 2014-15) failed to convert his county expertise into international success. He should be commended for seeing the quality of Ryan Sidebottom and Graeme Swann though.

^{Would Nasser Hussain give up his Sky TV role to work with England?}

Let’s go for: 1) D Fletcher, 2) Flower, 3) Stewart, 4=) Bayliss and Bumble, 6) K Fletcher, 7) Moores.

An over-riding impression of Bayliss is that he is laidback, that he doesn't do that much beyond a quiet word here and there. A bit like Duncan Fletcher's 'consultant' approach, but times two. 

That perception was enhanced by the observations of Dawid Malan, after he made 78 from 44 balls in his T20I debut against South Africa at Cardiff in 2017. If he expected detailed notes about clearing his front leg more or tweaking his backlift, he had to be content with a mere "well played", he said. 

"I don't do a lot of technical coaching," Bayliss admitted this week. "I don't say something for the sake of it or after every ball in the nets. But, if I see something, I'll have a chat. I let the other coaches get on with it. The batting and bowling coaches are good at their jobs."

Something of a contrast then to Moores, who Kevin Pietersen labelled "a woodpecker" (he also called Flower a "mood hoover" of course – I think he would have liked the genial Bayliss).

^{Duncan Fletcher is regarded by many to be England's best coach of the modern-era}

Mark Wood threw a little more light on the Bayliss tenure on the BBC Sport website this week, saying: "He lives and breathes cricket and analyses every single ball. Some would say he's quiet, but it's more the case that he only speaks when it's necessary and, when he does, it's worth listening to." Wood then went on to recount various antics, including the time he "tried to whip his shorts down", only for Bayliss to pin him down and jab an elbow in his face. Oops.

Bayliss riled county fans this week by calling for a reduction in Championship teams and games in an interview with The Sun, despite admitting that he barely watches any of it. He hadn't watched Pope bat ahead of his Test debut (perhaps his video was on the blink). He is entitled to his views of course, but fewer matches is the last thing already-starved fans want.

That is one thing his successor will be expected to do a bit more of, watch county cricket. And perhaps be a bit more proactive. Hands on. Passionate. England's Test team appears to need it.

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