Ashley Giles feels pressure on England to win games is costing Adil Rashid his chance

Ashley Giles is surprised Adil Rashid has not yet played for England in the West Indies and feels his lack of action is down to the pressure currently on England to start winning matches.

Rashid has been a spectator for the first two Tests, with James Tredwell playing in the first and his place going to Moeen Ali for the second.

Lancashire head coach Giles accepts that Ali is the logical choice to be England’s spinner for the summer series against New Zealand and the Ashes which follow it.

But he has questioned the lack of match experience offered to Rashid, the leg-spinner who took 46 wickets for Yorkshire’s county championship-winning team last season and for whom there is a wealth of support from former players, including Michael Vaughan and Graeme Swann.

“You’ve got to see him play and I’m a little surprised he hasn’t played this match,” said Giles, speaking as he penned a congratulation message to Jimmy Anderson as part of Slazenger’s celebratory flag tour to mark his breaking of the Test wickets record.

“Maybe they will use him in the last Test because going into the summer against the Kiwis and Australia, it’s going to be difficult to play him then.

“I think England would like to play him in the West Indies but they’ve got a lot on their minds as well.

“They’ve got to win Test matches and the side is under pressure. You would like to see him play but you don’t just give matches away.

“He has clearly developed well at Yorkshire and played a big part in their championship last season; he’s a good all-round cricketer.

“England need to find out if he can give you a certain amount of control in the first innings.

“Leg spinners historically can be quite expensive but if you’re consistently landing it in the right places then you don’t have to be.”

Giles feels only injury or a ‘massive loss of form’ will prevent Ali from being England’s spinner for the summer.

Ali was restored to the national side for the second Test in the West Indies at the expense of Treadwell, who took five wickets in the first Test but was left out in Grenada despite overcoming a minor injury.

Giles, who was England’s spinner during their dramatic 2005 Ashes win over the Australians, feels the dearth of options in that department mean that Ali is not only the most logical choice but also the only one.

 “He’s in pole position and I don’t see any reason why he shouldn’t be (England’s lead spinner),” said Giles, who is currently the head coach at Lancashire. “There is a lot of time between now and that series but he did a fantastic job last summer and he has really developed as a spin bowler.

“He bats as well, so he’s got that all-round package that England would be after.

“Who’s his competition? You’re looking at Tredwell, who did a really good job in that first Test and Adil Rashid, who hasn’t played in the West Indies yet, so you’re limited on real competition for him.

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“I see no reason at all why he shouldn’t start the Ashes series. At the moment I think he gets in your side so in many ways he’s a natural selection.”

Beyond Ali, Tredwell and Rashid, spin options are in short supply for England. Kent’s Adam Riley has been mentioned in despatches as a candidate but Giles feels it is an area in which the national side are currently deficient.

That paucity of talent, Giles feels, only underlines the view that it can only be Ali for the Ashes.

“There are young guys – Riley at Kent has kept Tredwell out of that team and the cupboard isn’t bare but it’s lightly stocked at the moment, shall we say,” he said.

“You need one spinner to play and unless Mo has an injury or a massive loss of form then you’d have to say it’s going to be him for the summer.”

Former England international Ashley Giles was signing Slazenger’s ‘Congratulations Jimmy’ flag which will be touring the country this week. Slazenger is celebrating Jimmy Anderson becoming England’s all-time leading Test wicker by giving 10 per cent off its entire cricket range. Visit store.slazenger.com and follow @SlazengerSport for more details.