SaqAs England’s white-ball teams abandoned the two World Cups they had hosted early last winter, Moeen Ali was alone in recognising the need to start over. It was time for the next generation to take over, the vice-captain said with characteristic self-effacing honesty. Now, at 37, he has called time on his own international career.
Having been replaced for the upcoming series against Australia by some of the recruits he had called up, and in the final weeks of his central contract, the news was widely expected. The confirmation came as he watched an Oval Test unfold – the ground where he delivered a match-winning performance on the final day of Test cricket in last summer’s Ashes, as well as the scene of that a hat-trick in 2017 – which made it entirely fitting.
Related: England all-rounder Moeen Ali retires from international cricket
Not that there is too great a hierarchy for a cricketer who served his country in every format for 10 years, took the fans on a rollercoaster ride and helped win two world trophies. It is just that Test cricket was No. 1 and a whole generation got to see Moeen Ali’s full repertoire on the sport’s widest canvas: the succulent drives and the gyroscopic counter-attacks that dipped and gripped, all with the glorious uncertainty of never knowing whether it would be his day or not.
When it all came together, there were few things more seductive, everything free, fluid and perfectly timed. But it was always the result of hard work and passion, ever since his father Munir built a concrete net in the garden of his terraced house in Sparkhill, Birmingham and, with the help of his twin brother Shabir, trained three top professionals from a young age. Moeen was the product of hard work – the 10,000-hour theory is evident – he simply never compromised on aesthetics in doing so.
The result was an international career that was as much about moments as numbers. Even when viewed through the prism of the all-rounder, they still delivered. Moeen is one of 15 men in history to have scored more than 3,000 Test runs and taken more than 200 Test wickets, winning both milestones last summer when he answered a Test SOS from Ben Stokes with an “LOL” and came out of Test retirement for one last job. Five Test centuries was too few for a player of his talent, but as many as, say, Andrew Flintoff.
While Moeen started out as a batsman – 2016, when he scored four Test centuries, was his most stable period in an otherwise yo-yo career – he ended up being the third England spinner after Derek Underwood and Graeme Swann to surpass 200 Test wickets with 204. A fourth-innings record with the ball of 63 wickets at an average of 23 and a strike rate of 40 also ranks among the greats. Frontline spin was never the plan here – the title took a while to feel comfortable – but he could still outspin the world’s best.
There have of course been times when the returns have been infuriating, his form volatile along the way. Spectators in Australia, for example, have never seen the best on their shores, with a mediocre 2017/18 season, and Nathan Lyon’s spell their lasting impression. The 2019 World Cup was also a frustrating time after such a pivotal role in the build-up, a combination of poor form and seaming surfaces seeing him watch the final from the bench. The medal was well-earned nonetheless, and three years later, as vice-captain to Jos Buttler at the T20 World Cup, a second came his way.
In contrast to his performances, Moeen has been consistent off the field, while also assuming multiple roles, be it senior player, vice-captain, advisor or confidant. He has been a big brother to many in the dressing room – not least to Adil Rashid, another stalwart of Eoin Morgan’s white-ball generation – and also the ice-breaker when a joke was much needed.
Guided by his Muslim faith, his Kashmiri roots and his working-class background, Moeen has also been hailed as the best of multicultural Britain during his career and accepted an OBE last year. But he has always worn his status as a flag-bearer with lightness and class. “When I step on the pitch for my country, I know there are a lot of people I represent,” he told the Guardian in 2019. “It’s not something I always dwell on or enjoy all the time, but I know where I stand in relation to all of that.”
The good news is that, as well as continuing to play in the domestic leagues (and being the type of character who will play at club level until he can no longer walk), Moeen has decided to become a coach. “I want to be one of the best,” he told Nasser Hussain in the newspaper interview confirming the news. “I can learn a lot from Baz [the England head coach, Brendon McCullum]”I hope people remember me as a free spirit. I played some good shots and some not so good shots, but I hope people enjoyed watching me play.”
While there is still a lot to be added to the game, it feels like mission accomplished.
Saq
