Jon Lewis named new head coach of England Women ahead of West Indies tour

Jon Lewis has been appointed as the new head coach of England’s women’s team, taking over in time to lead the side’s tour of the West Indies next month.

Lewis is an experienced figure at the England and Wales Cricket Board, having previously worked as head coach of the men’s under-19 squad and fast-bowling coach of the men’s senior side under Chris Silverwood.

Silverwood moved aside into a wider developmental brief earlier this year but set his sights on replacing Australian Lisa Keightley after she departed at the end of the summer.

His first assignment will be in the Caribbean, with three ODIs and five T20s in December, but attention will quickly turn to a high-profile 2023 schedule featuring a hotly anticipated home Ashes and a T20 World Cup in South Africa.

Lewis, 47, played for Gloucestershire, Sussex and Surrey and was a three-format international over the course of 15 appearances for England.

Another Jon Lewis, the former Durham coach and a batting consultant in Keightley’s set-up, was one of several candidates vying for the post from within the women’s game. Australian Ashley Noffke, spin specialist Gareth Breese and Oval Invincibles head coach Jonathan Batty were also linked.

Lewis said: “It’s very exciting to have been appointed head coach of the England women’s team. It’s a new challenge and one that I can’t wait to get stuck into.

“I’ve watched from a distance over the last few years and it’s clear that there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic about this team’s chances going forward.

“The last couple of years have seen the introduction of some younger players and that, allied with the increased strength in depth coming from the regional game, is a really promising sign for the coming few years.

“Our immediate focus is the West Indies, and particularly getting some points on the board in the ICC Women’s Championship, and then we’ll look ahead to South Africa and the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.”

Jonathan Finch, who led the recruitment process as director of England Women’s cricket, said: “We set out to find a head coach with a range of experiences to help lead an exciting group of players across all formats and I am excited with what the future holds with Jon in the role.

“Jon comes with excellent pedigree in the men’s game working across different levels of the international pathway, and we were really impressed by how he sees the role moving forward.

“We look forward to him coming on board and driving the future direction of this team.”

A squad for the West Indies trip will be announced next week, though selection took place before Lewis accepted the job.