Downton never the man to revive English cricket

Maybe he had spent too long away from international cricket, maybe he was never cut out for leadership but not for a moment did Paul Downton suggest he was the man to drag England cricket into a bright future.

Barely a year after his appointment as managing director, Downton shuffles off the stage, replacing his blazer for an anorak and swapping the prospect of several weeks in the Caribbean for a retirement scratching his head and wondering about that odd chapter in his life when, briefly, he managed England cricket.

Forget his bravery as a batsman against the West Indies fast bowlers of the 1980s. Forget his reliability as a wicketkeeper. Forget his decision to reappoint Peter Moores, retain Andy Flower and sack Ashley Giles. Downton will be remembered, almost exclusively, for his decision to sack Kevin Pietersen and his clumsy handling of the affair.

It was a decision that reeked of agendas and vengeance. While Downton justified it by saying he had never seen such a "disengaged" and "disconnected" performance of that of Pietersen in Sydney, those who watched the Ashes tour rather more closely saw a senior player attempting to help younger players and fit into an environment where he felt increasingly uncomfortable. The sense remains that Downton had decided, or been ordered, to dispense with Pietersen before he even started.

The irony is that, just as he made Pietersen the scapegoat for the Ashes debacle, so he has been made the scapegoat for the World Cup failure. Now he is the one "disconnected" and "disengaged". But whether sacking individuals will fix the broken system within English cricket remains doubtful.

To see Downton mingle with the England squad at the airport before this tour was to see the uncle nobody really remembers on the fringes of a family wedding. He has been irrelevant for some time. A decent, well-meaning man, no doubt, but utterly out of his depth in the world of modern, international cricket.

The decision to make his position redundant is no surprise; the decision to create a slightly altered one more so. The ECB are keen to cut their administrative costs and could well have done without this role altogether. Instead it seems they could be persuaded to create another extra position below the new Director of England Cricket role with a responsibility to manage the other aspects of Downton's role - women's cricket, disability and age-group cricket - that could otherwise be overlooked.

Michael Vaughan is the favourite for the new role. ESPNcricinfo understands that he has already met incoming ECB chairman Colin Graves and new chief executive Tom Harrison and, while he is far from popular with several current players and has a role with ISM - the sports management agency - that would have to end, he understands the demands of modern international cricket and has the courage to make a difference. Andrew Strauss and Ashley Giles might be considered other possible contenders - Nasser Hussain has ruled himself out - but Vaughan is in pole-position.

The cynical might suggest that is because the role will be public facing and designed to divert attention from the real ECB management. They might suggest, too, that this is another attempt to move on from the Giles Clarke era at the ECB. And while Strauss is seen as being too close to some of those still within the side - not least Alastair Cook, who has lost a pillar of support with Downton's departure - Vaughan appears to revel in the spotlight.

But this new role will tread on the toes of the head coach and blur the lines of responsibility for the new CEO, Tom Harrison. English cricket requires many things: a new middle-manager is not one of the most obvious.

Downton may be the first of several redundancies. The position of the chief selector, James Whitaker, appears especially precarious while a reorganisation of the management at Loughborough is imminent. It could be that Andy Flower, in something of a nebulous role at present and apparently heading for the exit only days ago, is given more responsibility under the rebranded Director of England Cricket.

Vaughan's appointment would also leave Moores in an uncomfortable position. Vaughan has been heavily critical of the coach in the media and made no secret of his struggles working with him during the period in which he was England coach. It is hard to see that relationship proving sustainable.

The bookies immediately reduced the odd of Pietersen making a return to an England side from 25-1 to 2-1. And it is true that this decision clears one significant hurdle for Pietersen. Peter Moores has, ESPNcricinfo understands, already made it clear to Harrison that he could, if necessary, work with Pietersen again and while Alastair Cook remains resistant, he is no longer involved in the limited-overs sides. Pietersen will have to score some runs in domestic cricket first, but his involvement in the World T20 this time next year is far from impossible. It seems little is in English cricket at present.