'New coach will run show' - Strauss

Andrew Strauss has insisted he will allow England's new head coach the "space to do his job" despite having already made some major decisions regarding selection and tactics.

Strauss, England's new director of cricket, confirmed that he had started talking to candidates for the role and suggested he hoped to have someone in place for the start of the Ashes series on July 8.

With Strauss having already confirmed the identity of the Test captain and vice-captain, as well as having decided that there will be no recall for Kevin Pietersen this summer, there have been suggestions that some candidates for the coaching role will fear interference if they take on the job. But Strauss was adamant that, once the appointment is made, he will not be "knocking on the dressing room door".

"The new coach is going to be given the opportunity and space to do his job as he should be," Strauss told the BBC. "He is not going to be a whipping boy for me or anyone else.

"He has to run the show as he sees fit and have a good close working relationship with the captain. I have got to help him to do what he needs to do. I am there to help and support him and look a bit more strategically and long term in our planning. If we have that situation we can co-exist quite happily.

"I am not going to be one of those guys always knocking on the dressing room door telling him he has to do this and that. It has got to be his show to run. I am going to get out of the way, allow him to do his job and the captain to do the job.

"There is a strong case for the coach to have a strong say in selection. He is there on the ground, knows conditions and how the players are feeling on the ground and in the dressing room. The coach is a selector at the moment, but I think selection is something we need to look at and not rush into it."

While acknowledging England's "difficult" last 18 months - "I don't think anyone would say that the World Cup had any real positives to take out of it," he said - Strauss also expressed his belief that the new coach had a wonderful opportunity to build on the improvements made over the last year and that the job remained "one of the three big jobs in world cricket".

"We have had a great run," Strauss said. "The last decade has been phenomenal. Let's not forget that. There is a lot that is good about England cricket at the moment. But we have to move forward. The game is evolving very quickly and there is a feeling we are behind the curve on some fronts. We need to make sure we are ahead of the curve.

"This is one of the three big jobs in world cricket. For any coach with ambitions to further themselves, this is an exciting opportunity. There are a lot of people interested in this job, definitely."

Strauss hopes that, with a coach in place, the side can improve the image of the game in England and play in a manner that makes people proud of the side once more.

"The bigger picture is getting people playing the game of cricket and watching the game of cricket," he said. "In order to do that we need an England team that people are proud of. This is why the environment and culture is so important. The way we do it and way the guys hold themselves.

"In this job you kind of know you are not going to be popular. There are going to be times when it is not fun and times when people scratch their head and can't measure your impact. You are in the background and you are reliant on coaches and players doing their stuff.

"I am not doing the job to be popular, but to make a difference."