Cricket: Ashley Giles turns down ECB

Ashley Giles has turned down an approach from the England and Wales Cricket Board to become its new national selector.

Andrew Strauss, the England team director, announced an overhaul to the selection process after – but apparently not in spite of – the 4-0 Ashes defeat in Australia, with James Whitaker stepping down after 10 years on the panel, of which four were spent in the lead role.

Giles, the former spinner, was previously a selector from 2008 to 2014. This was combined with his first spell as Warwickshire’s director of cricket and then 18 months as the England one‑day coach. He then moved on to Lancashire when the split-coach model, in which Andy Flower was in charge of the Test side, was ended.

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The 45-year-old, now in his second year back at Edgbaston as sporting director, is understood to have been contacted about the new England vacancy in the past week. This was declined, however, as Giles looks to rebuild Warwickshire from their place in Division Two following relegation last summer.

Strauss advertised the national selector role a fortnight ago as part of a revamped system that slims the panel down by one spot but increases the input of an extended scouting network. The new national selector will appoint their deputy, who will sit on the committee along with the head coach, Trevor Bayliss.

The existing selectors Mick Newell and Angus Fraser – the cricket directors at Nottinghamshire and Middlesex respectively – have been invited to apply for the top job but would have to leave their county jobs if they were appointed. Such dual roles are being cut from the England set-up to avoid perceptions about any conflict of interest.

Strauss began establishing the new scouting network last summer when the former England players Geoff Arnold, Bob Cottam, John Emburey, Jack Birkenshaw and Mike Hendrick helped to spot players for the England Lions and England Under-19s. Now the Loughborough coaches Graham Thorpe, Kevin Shine and Peter Such will also have greater input into the decision-making process, with Mo Bobat, the Player Identification Lead, overseeing the network.

“The new approach will allow us to see more players throughout the county game, more often, and simplify the selection process,” Strauss said.