Cricket: Shane Bond - 'pretty humbling' to be asked to coach England's Ashes tour

Bowling coach Shane Bond. Photo / Paul Taylor

Former New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond admitted it was ''pretty humbling" to be asked to join England's Ashes tour as bowling coach, even if only for the first two tests.

Bond, one of New Zealand's finest quicks in an all-too-brief international career, will join England for the first two tests of the series, at Perth, starting on November 23, and Adelaide a week later, before heading to fill his Big Bash League assistant coach gig at the Brisbane Heat.

There he'll team up with former New Zealand team mates Dan Vettori, the head coach, and Brendon McCullum.

England Cricket Board boss Andrew Strauss made contact with Bond, and they chatted during the Champions Trophy in England in June.

''I knew the bowling coach job was up and that (encumbent) Ottis Gibson was moving to South Africa," Bond said from India last night.

''I got asked if I was interested in applying. Andrew and I talked around the modern game, what I was up to and what was happening for England.

''A fulltime role wasn't for me, but the consultancy stuff I was interested in, so it was pretty cool to get a (subsequent) call from Andrew."

Bond explained the terms of his Brisbane Heat contract - the BBL starts in mid-December, counting Bond out of the last three England tests -- and England were happy to work around that.

It gets no bigger, certainly in terms of the history of test cricket, than an Ashes series. Bond appreciates the significance of the offer.

''It was pretty humbling to be asked by England to come and work with their team.

''I grew up watching the Ashes from the early 1980s, and to have the opportunity to work with the team, and be right in amongst it with the hype and pressure and some great bowlers as well, I'm very lucky."

Bond, 42, took 87 wickets at just 22.09 apiece in his 18 tests, and 147 in 82 ODIs at 20.88, in a career significantly hampered by injury.

He did time as New Zealand's bowling coach until the end of the 2015 World Cup before moving in other coaching directions, including the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League.

Bond has an open mind about what the future holds and won't rule out having a look at coaching with the New Zealand team again at some point in the future.

He maintains the importance of having a plan in mind.

''I'd have to see how it fits in and the timing but if you're not trying to get better as a coach and develop and have goals around that sort of thing, it can be de-motivating.

''It's something you want to be prepared for if you want to go down that path.

''All the experiences you put yourself through are preparation to take those sort of positions if they come along."

And Bond had a quick and brief response when asked about the fracas involving England allrounder Ben Stokes this week, which left him with a broken finger, badly tarnished reputation and which has put his Ashes tour in serious jeopardy: ''No comment on that mate."