Giles likely to fill in if Moores loses his job

London, Jan 4 : As England cricket coach Peter Moores fights to save his job, Ashley Giles is in line for a stop-gap role for the West Indies series till a permanent successor is appointed.

Moores and captain Kevin Pietersen are at loggerheads over the selection of Michael Vaughan for the West Indies tour.

As coach, Moores was one of the four selectors who decided not to recall Vaughan for the West Indies tour against Pietersen's wishes.

With Ashes only six months away, England cannot wait to solve this problem. Although the final decisions have yet to be made, the likeliest outcome is that Moores will not be the coach when England fly to the West Indies Jan 21, reports The Daily Telegraph.

After Moores took over almost two years ago from Duncan Fletcher, England have beaten only the two weakest of the major Test teams, West Indies and New Zealand. England have lost seven and drawn one of their last eight competitive matches because an inexperienced captain in Pietersen is paired with an inexperienced coach in Moores.

Hugh Morris, managing director of England cricket board, is trying to defuse the situation when Pietersen returns from his safari Thursday.

If Morris cannot reconcile England's captain and coach, the popular idea is that Giles should take the team to the Caribbean as the temporary or emergency coach. Giles has been an Ashes winner, England selector, a member of the last England team to win in the West Indies, and someone who has had a lengthy playing relationship with Pietersen. The only thing the former left-arm spinner lacks is the experience of coaching -- he has been to one season in charge of Warwickshire.

--IANS