Australian North set to be England selector

Australian North set to be England selectorImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Marcus North played 21 Tests for Australia, including two Ashes seriesByStephan ShemiltCricket CorrespondentPublished2 minutes agoEngland are set to appoint former Australia international Marcus North as their new national selector.As first reported in the Telegraph, the 46-year-old has been chosen after final interviews this week.The move is not finalised, but North would become the first foreigner in charge of selecting the England men's team.The England and Wales Cricket Board has not commented.North, who played 21 Tests for Australia, has a long association with the English domestic game.Since 2018 he has been director of cricket at Durham, one of the six counties for who he played first-class cricket. At Durham, North has worked alongside England Test captain Ben Stokes.North is poised to replace Luke Wright in the most significant change in England's backroom staff since the 4-1 Ashes defeat.The departure of Wright, who served as selector for more than three years, was a personal decision and not linked to the loss in Australia.North will join head coach Brendon McCullum, director of cricket Rob Key and the Test and limited overs captains – Stokes and Harry Brook – in selecting England squads, with some input on the final XI for matches. Performance director Ed Barney and head of player identification David Court are also involved in selection.North's brief will include involvement in selection for England Lions, liaising with counties and leading a team of scouts.Under McCullum, England have often ignored proven performers from county cricket in favour of the players they believe to have the attributes for international cricket. It will perhaps be North's role to provide balance to England's methods.He may only have a limited involvement in the process of choosing a squad for the first Test against New Zealand, beginning at Lord's on 4 June.The sq...