Buchanan agrees ECB deal

John Buchanan will travel to England this month on a short-term coaching assignment with the ECB, and hopes the stint could lead to a longer consultancy deal. The former Australia coach would not elaborate on whether he intends to divulge information on Australian players on the eve of the eagerly-anticipated Ashes series, but hinted strongly that his loyalties would lie with England should the ECB choose to offer him a longer-term contract.

"It is my own business who I choose to talk to and what I talk about," Buchanan told Cricinfo. "Both myself and the ECB have indicated that in terms of their elite programme I could fulfil a role. I will fly over on June 28, have a good look at the elite programme, and sit down with them to see what potentially lies ahead. This trip will be largely about looking at the coaching programmes, and working with the Under-19s and the [England] Lions team."

Buchanan's time in England will coincide with the Lions' tour match against the Australians in Worcester from July 1 to 4 - just four days before the first Ashes Test in Cardiff. His presence in the opposition dressing room will come as a jarring sight to many, given his last Test coaching assignment entailed guiding Australia to a 5-0 Ashes triumph in 2006-07. "John is free to do whatever he wants," replied Brett Lee, abruptly, when asked whether he would be disappointed if Buchanan joined the England camp for the Ashes.

Buchanan has held several discussions with Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket, and previously worked with the Lions on their tour of New Zealand. He initially rebuffed an approach regarding the England coaching position, eventually filled by Andy Flower, but has expressed interest in accepting a consultancy role that would see him work with England's elite programmes, including the academy at Loughborough and the national team.

"I'm looking forward to the opportunity to get over there and look at the general set-up," he said. "I think it's fair to say that there has been a fair amount of interest from both parties, and I suppose the situation will become clearer in early July."

An ECB official said on Wednesday that the board had an "ad-hoc relationship" with Buchanan, but would not speculate as to whether a longer-term role was under consideration.

News of Buchanan's short-term England stint will presumably be met with howls of indignation from many sections of the Australian media, which last week accused the former national coach of treachery for holding negotiations with the ECB in an Ashes year. Those flames could be fanned further after Buchanan delivered a veiled swipe at Cricket Australia, his former employers, over their treatment of coaches and support staff.

"I noticed that the new MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) goes a long way to looking after players, which is good, but I am concerned that support staff are being overlooked," he said. "There has obviously been an attempt to keep players from defecting to leagues such as the IPL with moves made to offer them and their families better support. It mustn't be forgotten that the longevity of a team doesn't only depend on players, but also the coaches, trainers and support staff.

"They are the ones who go into a career in cricket with not a lot of guarantees, nor a great deal of support, recognition, remuneration or reward. The IPL has obviously given them another avenue to pursue, which is great, but I would like to think steps were being taken to look after them at international level."

Until last year, Buchanan was employed by CA as a coaching ambassador. He currently runs a Brisbane-based consultancy business, and holds down the high-profile position of director of cricket operations with the Kolkata Knight Riders IPL franchise.

Whether he retains the latter role is a matter of media speculation in India, however, with many suggesting that Buchanan could be shown the door following KKR's poor 2009 campaign. "I'm not 100% sure where that is placed, but the situation will become clearer in the next week," he said.