ASHLEY Giles believes he still has “a lot to do” at Warwickshire even though his tenure as director of cricket, heading towards its fifth year, is already the longest by an Edgbaston team boss in recent times.

Giles has never concealed the fact that he has high ambitions as a coach. Just six months after his surprise appointment as Bears director of cricket in September 2007, he applied for the England job when it went to Andy Flower.

He is still ambitious and, now an England selector, sees no reason why that role would preclude him from, at some point, going back in for the role of national coach.

But, still only 38, Giles has plenty of time on his side. And he regards his business at Edgbaston as very much unfinished.

Since succeeding Mark Greatbatch at the helm he has taken Warwickshire back up to the championship Division One and kept them there and steered the team to Clydesdale 40 Trophy glory at Lord’s last year.

But success in Twenty20 has proved elusive while, under Giles, the Bears are only for the first time this season building a serious bid for county cricket’s biggest prize, the championship.

“There is still a lot to do here,” said the former England spinner. “I am very ambitious and those ambitions remain but there are still prizes I would like to win with Warwickshire. I have no plans on disappearing anywhere.

“We are putting together a good side here. It just depends how long the bosses think I’m the man for the job. I don’t see the job as necessarily having a shelf life. Some guys at other counties have been around quite a while.

‘‘Steve Rhodes has been around a lot longer than me. So have Martin Moxon and Geoff Cook.