IT is a measure of how far the world has come – the sporting world at least – that there was little or no hoo-ha about an Australian being appointed as England cricket coach.

Trevor Bayliss has been welcomed with open arms by the great and good of English cricket, with former captain Michael Vaughan leading the plaudits, saying the ECB selectors had made a “good call”.

What is a little disarming is that even his fellow countrymen have applauded the appointment, which comes just over a month before the two sides go head-to-head for the Ashes.

You would imagine, as a former head coach of New South Wales and the Sydney Sixers, gaining great success in both the long and short format of the game in his homeland, that Bayliss would have the inside track on many of Australia’s leading players.

He even led the national side to a 2-1 success against South Africa in a Twenty20 series last year, but Australia coach Darren Lehman remained relaxed about his decision to cross the divide.

He said: “This just serves as another reminder to us that this Ashes will be a tough contest."

While former Australia batsman Michael North added: "In an ideal world it would be nice to appoint an English coach for the England side, but in sport in general that's not the case now.

“The world is quite small and you want the right people for the job and Trevor is someone that English cricket will enjoy having. They're very lucky to get him.”

This is nothing new, of course. National teams are now relaxed about bringing outside influences into the dressing room.

The ECB have employed the services of Zimbabweans Duncan Fletcher and Andy Flower in the position in the past, while the English Football Association have gone down a similar route.

Sven Goran Eriksson’s arrival may have ruffled a few feathers, but the Swede was warmly embraced after guiding England to a 5-1 win in Germany.

When Fabio Capello was later appointed as manager there was not much made of the fact he was Italian until results started to tail off.

And I guess that will be the secret for Bayliss this summer as he bids to repeat the success he enjoyed as Sri Lanka's head coach.

If he can mastermind an Ashes victory, his nationality will be lost in the celebrations, although I am sure the Aussies will not let us forget it.

And for me, those sly digs that are sure to come our way will probably tarnish any possible victory.

In real life, I don’t believe national borders should matter. When you see pictures of Syrian refugees flooding into Greek islands, my initial reaction is to try to help them. It’s not their fault they happened to be born in such an unstable country – they should be able to live in safety.

But when it comes to sporting contests I don’t see the point in today’s relaxed attitude to national boundaries.

The whole point of international competition is to test one country against another to see who is the best.

The contrast of styles and approaches is what makes events like the Ashes and the World Cup compelling viewing.

Water that down and I think these sporting spectacles lose something.