Gibson leaves England for West Indies

Ottis Gibson has left his position as England's bowling coach to become the head coach of West Indies, according to the UK's Daily Telegraph.

There were suggestions last week from Radio Jamaica indicating Gibson's departure but they were flatly denied by the ECB who said they had no knowledge of any deal being struck. Since then, however, the ECB have officially given Gibson permission to talk to the West Indies Cricket Board about its vacant head coach's position.

England are due to tour Dubai and Bangladesh next month and will now almost certainly, according to the report, be travelling without Gibson.

Gibson, 40, played two Tests and 15 one-day internationals for the West Indies and applied for the coach's job in 2007. He instead, however, got an offer from England to take over from Allan Donald first as a temporary and then full-time bowling coach.

He has fitted well into the disciplined regime of Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss as he tried to nurture an inexperienced attack into a potent force. The tour of South Africa showed some of his work had paid off, as England conceded just four runs to no-balls through the four-match series.

It continues a tumultuous week after South African coach Mickey Arthur resigned on January 26 and the South African board fired their panel of selectors the day after. Though a blow for England, as there appears no obvious replacement, Gibson's departure is a boon for West Indies.

They sacked John Dyson as their coach last August and have recently shown signs of a resurgence, performing admirably in Australia. Gibson's arrival would be a welcome step for a developing side with talented young fast bowlers such as Kemar Roach.