Ashley Giles

Hundredth Test wicket Until 2004, his most successful bowling had been in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and that year started with an uninspiring performance in the Caribbean. He followed this with his best Test-figures of 9–122 in the second Test at Edgbaston, and was instrumental in England beating West Indies twice. In that series he gained the nickname "King of Spain", after a set of mugs ordered in 2000 (for his testimonial year) were erroneously printed with that slogan, instead of "King of Spin". There were originally only two of these mugs produced, one of which Giles used for his coffee in the dressing room (this mug was subsequently stolen), and another on display in the club shop. However, after the error was publicised, a further two hundred mugs were produced with King Juan Carlos on the other side and were snapped up by Warwickshire fans.

Fans during the Ashes series of 2005 also regularly sang "Y viva España" in Giles' honour. Giles was, until that successful run of form, also gently derided by commentators: the BBC's Test Match Special commentator Henry Blofeld famously labelled him a "Wheelie bin" because of his trundling run-up, much to Giles' disgust. Blofeld however, insisted that the moniker was not malicious. (It was originally bestowed on Giles by The Guardian journalist David Hopps.) In the final Test, veteran off-break bowler Shaun Udal replaced him, with some success. In the Tests of summer 2006, whilst Giles was injured for the entire season, Panesar played against both Sri Lanka and Pakistan, with conspicuous success. On 24 April 2006, Giles gave an interview stating that although he had at one point feared his career might be in danger, he was now "a lot more confident and happy" after being diagnosed with a sportman's hernia. At the end of October 2006, after spending time in India with the England Champions Trophy squad, Giles was passed fit for selection, and took Panesar's place in the team for the first Test at Brisbane. However, he was dropped for the third Test in the series, with Panesar reclaiming his place.

Giles flew home from the 2006 Ashes tour of Australia on 1 December in order to care for his wife who had a brain tumour. He was not selected for England's 2007 World Cup squad, nor in their 2007 summer performance squad. On Warwickshire's pre-season tour he suffered some hip discomfort, which revealed a need for an operation. It kept him out for most of the 2007 English county series, and on 9 August, Giles officially announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, following advice from doctors in light of his injury.

Coaching career Following his retirement, in September 2007, Giles became Warwickshire's director of cricket, replacing Mark Greatbatch, ahead of Dermot Reeve. In November two months later, Giles was named the official spin coach in the England Performance Programme. On 18 January 2008, Giles was added to a new four-man panel, along with Peter Moores and James Whitaker, headed by Geoff Miller, which replaced David Graveney in the role of national selector for the England team, the latter having been removed from the position and reinstated as a national performance manager. Led Warwickshire to the Division One County Championship in September 2012, Division Two County Championship 2008, CB40 2010 & Pro 40 Division Two 2009.

On 28 November 2012 the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed Ashley Giles would become England's limited overs Head Coach taking charge of the Twenty20 and One Day International teams.

Following his departure from that post in April 2014 he spent the summer months as match analyst for ESPN, playing in the Warwickshire Premier League for Nuneaton CC in return for a charitable donation and setting a world record by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro to play in the highest game of cricket ever played (also for charity).

In October 2014 he was appointed as cricket director and head coach of Lancashire County Cricket Club. In December 2016, he was appointed as sport director of Warwickshire County Cricket Club

He became the managing director of men's cricket for England in December 2018. It was announced on 2 February 2022 that he was leaving the role following a poor Ashes cricket performance over the winter of 2021. During his time in office he was associated with the controversial rotation of players and the merging of the chairman of selectors and the coach.

Giles was appointed as Chief Executive by Worcestershire, beginning in the role on 3 July 2023.

Personal life Giles is a resident of Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire and was named an 'Honorary Citizen' of the town by the mayor after the 2005 Ashes success. The award was created for him, as he did not meet the usual criteria to become a Freeman. Giles was awarded an MBE in the 2006 New Year Honours for his role in the successful Ashes-winning squad. He is married to the Norwegian Stine (née Osland), with whom he has two children, Anders Fraser and Matilde Louise. He is a lifelong supporter of Queens Park Rangers F.C.

He is a graduate of Manchester Metropolitan University's Masters of Sport Directorship programme.

Awards NBC Denis Compton Award 1996 and 1997 Wisden Cricketer of the Year 2005 Awarded the MBE in 2005 Honorary Citizen of Droitwich Spa 2005