London Spirit axe World Cup-winning coach Trevor Bayliss | The Hundred, 2024

After two disastrous seasons in which London Spirit could only muster three wins, 2019 World Cup-winning coach Trevor Bayliss was sacked on December 3. Bayliss, who replaced Warne, was expected to make inroads at the club but has constantly failed at the biggest stage over the last two years.

Especially in the 2023 season, the Spirits could only win one clash out of eight matches despite having marquee names such as Shimron Hetmyer and Andre Russell in the setup. 

“We’d all like to thank Trevor for his considerable efforts across the last three seasons,” Fraser Stewart, London Spirit’s general manager and the MCC’s head of cricket, said in a statement. “He initially joined us in difficult circumstances and led the side to a strong finish in 2022, but the team hasn’t been able to replicate that success since.

“As a group, we’re desperate to see London Spirit competing at the right end of the table and we think a new approach may be of benefit to our chances. Trevor leaves Lord’s with our best wishes and our gratitude.”

Unlike the men’s team, Spirit are currently the defending champion, under the tutelage of Ashley Noffke and the able leadership of Heather Knight. According to ESPNCricinfo’s reports, James Foster and Paul Collingwood are the two leading candidates for the top job. 

Bayliss has few coaching opportunities in franchise cricket, with Sydney Thunder being the only active gig for the veteran coach. Earlier this year, Ricky Ponting replaced Bayliss as Punjab Kings’ head coach.

If you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out on our content — big time. Download the App here.