Giles targets Ashes glory in Australia with contracts for fast bowlers

England are to offer central contracts to a pool of emerging young fast bowlers in an attempt to improve their chances of winning the Ashes in Australia.

The contracts will be on a similar level to the incremental white-ball deals on offer and are part of the new round of central contracts that will come into force next year. The deals are close to being signed off by the England and Wales Cricket Board, the counties and the Professional Cricketers’ Association.

The contracts for fast bowlers are the idea of Ashley Giles, the England team director, who sees it as a way to try to compete in Australia, where England have lacked pace on flat pitches. It was one area Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, pinpointed for the reason why they lost 4-0 in 2017-18.

Jofra Archer was rushed through the qualification process to solve the problem in the short term but England know they have to develop their own fast-bowling talent to be Ashes contenders in Australia over the next decade.

Giles is looking at around six contracted fast bowlers. The contracts will give the ECB more control over workloads and where they play in the winter months. For example, England are keen to arrange winter placements in Australia so bowlers learn how to bowl on flatter pitches that do not offer the same assistance as in England.

The contract would also give the ECB the option of controlling whether the bowlers play in Twenty20 leagues in the winter, closer monitoring of fitness levels and work with specific coaches.

Incremental contracts are given to one-day players and match county deals and are a step below the central contracts Test players are awarded. Players who could receive a deal are Saqib Mahmood at Lancashire, Warwickshire’s Henry Brookes, Matt Fisher at Yorkshire and George Garton at Sussex.

The England players have negotiated a significant pay rise in their next central contracts, with the likes of Joe Root and Ben Stokes earning more than £1million. Giles has put on hold his search for a new England coach to replace Bayliss until after the World Cup and there is a strong possibility they will have an interim head coach for the New Zealand tour in November.