Giles feared his career might be over at one stage because of injury

Giles recently underwent a second hip operation and will not play any part in the series against Pakistan, which starts at Lord's next week.

But he told BBC Five Live: "I feel a lot brighter and more confident now, having had this operation done.

"I've been told by the specialist that I will be fit (for the Ashes), so there's new hope for me."

Interview: England spinner Ashley Giles

It is good news for England at the end of a week when skipper Michael Vaughan was ruled out of the Ashes tour following knee surgery.

But Giles admits he will have to prove his fitness before he can expect to play a part in the Ashes.

"I'm aiming for the end of September and hopefully to be fit for the Champions Trophy (in India), but it remains to be seen whether they'd want me to go on such a tour having not played any cricket.

"But with the Ashes coming up, I need to get some sort of cricket under my belt to make myself available for that tour.

"It would either be maybe playing some cricket abroad in one of the warmer countries of the world, whether it be South Africa or Australia - who knows, or going on that Champions Trophy trip," he said.

Giles has not played international cricket since the second Test in Pakistan last November.

He had his first operation after returning home from that tour, but needed more surgery last month and flew to Colorado in the USA to see a colleague of Dr Richard Steadman, the knee and shoulder specialist, who recently operated on team-mate Simon Jones.

England will be very keen to include Giles in their Ashes plans, if at all possible, following his important contribution to the Ashes success in 2005.

He took 10 wickets in that series and also hit the winning runs in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge and 59 on the final day at The Oval when England held out for a draw to clinch overall victory.