Kent skipper Rob Key believes that coach Graham Ford made “a big decision” to pull out of the race to become England’s next coaching supremo.

However, Key is delighted the 48-year-old South African is staying at Canterbury to continue their excellent working relationship, as they aim to recapture the county’s First Division status in championship cricket and build on the one day fortunes of the last two seasons.

He said: “I have spoken to Graham several times about the England situation. It was a big decision for him to make, but he obviously felt it wasn’t right.”

Key touted Ford as the “best man for the job” after being installed as one of the early favourites to succeed Peter Moores when he was fired in January, having worked with former captain Kevin Pietersen at Natal earlier in their respective careers, only for him to go as well in a surprise double sacking.

Ford is still at home in Durban, but is due back with the county ahead of the start of the new season later this month.

Key said: “I think Fordy would have been fantastic at the job, but fair play to him for making it decision because it would have earned him a lot of money.

"But he never does things to help his ego and would probably have spent hours thinking about it.”

Reflecting on his relationship with Ford, Key added: “We have the same ideas and very rarely disagree. We share the same views about the values and basics of what we think is a pretty simple game.

“ I feel very fortunate to work with him. It’s rare to hear Fordy say too much publicly, but if anyone wants an extra net, or one of the bowlers wants to work on something, he is always available as is Simon Willis. They are very often the first in and last to leave.”