India v England: Giles relishing the ‘challenge’ of facing world champions

England limited-overs coach Ashley Giles insists he is excited about the challenge of facing world champions India ahead of the opening one-day international in Rajkot on Friday.

With an inexperienced squad missing four key players in Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, James Anderson and Stuart Broad, the tourists know they have a tough assignment in store.

But the former England spinner, 39, who is at the helm for the first time since taking the role in November, is nonetheless enjoying the task so far.

“Of course it is different from a normal day job,” said Giles. “But ultimately this is where I want to be.

“The opportunity is great as India is one of the biggest challenges to come to and coach especially in one-day cricket.”

Alastair Cook’s side lost both warm-up matches, highlighting issues with both the batting and the bowling for the team.

But the former Warwickshire spinner believes that his young charges are doing all they can to turn their fortunes around ahead of Friday’s series’ opener.

“We lost the first two practice games but the guys have worked incredibly hard, we have been very specific with a relatively young crew. The enthusiasm is great and I have been very happy.”

So why is so difficult for an English side to win in the limited-overs format?

“The conditions are so alien to what we are used to,” said Giles. “We adapted for the Tests and we are going to try and adapt for the ODIs.”

“The two warm-up games showed up our inexperience in the seam department and a lot of squad do not have a lot of experience out here. We knew that but they are also very bright bowlers too and hopefully they will adapt quickly.”

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