Jason Gillespie has given his backing to fellow Australian Trevor Bayliss to take over as England head coach, despite being a contender for the job himself.

The Yorkshire coach was the overwhelming favourite to be appointed to the England setup, but it is now believed that Bayliss is the frontrunner in the eyes of the ECB's director of England cricket Andrew Strauss.

Bayliss, who is the current New South Wales coach, previously led Sri Lanka to the World Cup final in 2011, but they were beaten by India.

"If it is Trevor, I'm fully supportive of it," The Northern Echo quotes Gillespie as saying. "He is a very good operator and I've only heard good things.

"England wanted a coach with a proven track record, and if it is Trevor, as it appears likely that it is, his track record's absolutely unbelievable. I've got absolutely no qualms about that.

"If I put myself in Andrew's shoes, I'd probably make the same decision if I'm honest."

Bayliss has proved his ability with the New South Wales by winning the Sheffield Shield title, and he also guided the Kolkata Knight Riders to the Indian Premier League crown.