NSW Blues and Sydney Sixers coach Trevor Bayliss has reportedly accepted the England head coaching role.

The UK's Daily Telegraph reported Bayliss had pipped fellow Australian Jason Gillespie as the England and Wales Cricket Board's preferred candidate and had been offered the role.

But now the Guardian is reporting that Bayliss, who acted as Darren Lehmann's understudy as Australia's Twenty20 coach as recently as last November, has agreed to terms with the ECB.

Gillespie, current head coach of county club Yorkshire, had been the favourite to replace Peter Moores who was sacked earlier this month after England's poor World Cup performance and a 1-1 series draw against the West Indies in the Caribbean.

"The ECB have made a press release and they’ve said they’re speaking to (the) preferred candidate. I’ve spoken to Andrew Strauss and I’m not that preferred candidate. That’s absolutely fine," Gillesepie told Sky Sports UK today.

"Hard to say disappointed," said Gillespie when asked if he was disappointed that he was overlooked for the role.

"I think it would have been a good job to have, no question.

"There’s exciting times ahead for English cricket and it would have been a great challenge but it’s not to be.

"As I’ve said, I have a wonderful job a Yorkshire and the Adelaide Strikers and I’m really looking forward to continuing that work."

The England offer is believed to be worth several times more than Bayliss's current deal with NSW, and also factors in the loss of earnings his lucrative IPL deal as coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders commands.

The 52-year-old has previously coached Sri Lanka, taking the island nation to the 2011 World Cup final, along with guiding NSW to several Bupa Sheffield Shield titles and Kolkata to Indian Premier League silverware last year.

Bayliss has also coached Australia at T20 level, guiding Aaron Finch's men to a 2-1 series win over South Africa last November.

If Trevor Bayliss is the new coach of England, then England are very lucky, as he is a ripper & even better, he's pure old school too... — Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) May 25, 2015

Bayliss also worked at Sri Lanka alongside current England caretaker coach Paul Fabrace, and Strauss may see pair's familiarity as a way to help bridge the England dressing room between the old guard and his new regime.

With nine NSW players in Australia's Ashes squad, including young tyros Steve Smith, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, Bayliss could be the perfect architect to plot the tourists' downfall this winter.

The prospect of coaching the Old Enemy has been on the former wicketkeeper's mind since last year.

"I am interested in hearing more about the job," Bayliss told The Telegraph newspaper in the UK in April 2014.

"I am happy doing the jobs I have got at the moment but when it comes to a position like that (England) I would be silly not to find out what they have to say and finding out a bit more about it.

"I have not met with anyone as of yet but that may happen in the near future."

Former Australia and NSW fast bowler Geoff Lawson believes Bayliss's player-management skill is what makes him a successful head coach.

"He (Bayliss) has been successful for very simple reasons, and that is he keeps it simple," Lawson told cricket.com.au.

"He never gets overly excited or overly depressed by the game or by performances, and he's got a great knowledge of the game.

"(But) his man management is a real strength - he's relaxed and calming and able to get the best out of players.

"That's all part of the territory when you do those sorts of international coaching jobs, it's not just about the cricket but managing all the other thing that's around them.

"England no doubt feel that the new coach will need to manage a few people, and they will undoubtedly be bringing in some new, young players.

"You would hope that those young players will have unbounded enthusiasm and that everyone is heading in the right direction and that's what the coach has got to ensure.

"They certainly weren't all heading in the right direction during the Australian summer, and it showed.

"But he (Bayliss) is pretty happy where he is and it would take a serious jolt to have him give up what he's doing."

England's Daily Mail reported the extensive travel demands of the England role proved a stumbling block too far for Gillespie, who had wanted the freedom to skip some of the hectic international calendar, much as Lehmann did with Bayliss for Australia last year.

At the time, Lehmann said a "different voice" in the dressing room could actually be an advantage in keeping the players fresh.

"Trevor is a very good coach with international experience and has led NSW and the Sydney Sixers extremely well so I have no worries handing the team over to him; the players might actually enjoy having a different voice for these matches," Lehmann said.

The Mail claimed Strauss remained adamant the new coach take charge of all three formats, which moved Bayliss into pole position.

If Bayliss accepts the offer it would mean NSW would have to scramble to find a new first-class coach, with senior assistant coach Phil Jaques taking a role with Queensland less than a fortnight ago.

Victoria filled their coaching vacancy with former England fast bowling coach David Saker while the South Australia Cricket Association is widely expected to name Jamie Siddons as its new head coach.