The present Test series between England and New Zealand has already generated a lot of buzzes, and it added more to it when former Test cricketer Moeen Ali revealed his wish to return to the game and play in a red-ball series in Pakistan in November-December this year.
Moeen Ali resigned from Test cricket in September of last year, having made 64 appearances for England and scoring 2,914 runs and 195 wickets. In the longest version of the game, the all-rounder amassed five centuries and five five-fors. Moeen has shifted his emphasis entirely to white-ball cricket, and he is targeting a place in the English XI for the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.
However, the southpaw indicated a desire to play in Pakistan, where he has family ties, and stated that he would be available for the red-ball tour if head coach Brendon McCullum required him.
What did Moeen Ali say in the BBC interview?
“When, or if, (England head coach) Baz McCullum wants me, I’ll play in Pakistan. I have played Pakistan Super League out there a few years ago, but it’s not the same, to travel with an England side there and have a family background from that part of the world will be amazing. I know the support and love you can get out there, they love cricket. It’s very appealing for sure.”
In the IPL in 2018, Moeen and McCullum shared a dressing room with Royal Challengers Bangalore, and the southpaw thinks the combination of McCullum and Ben Stokes is frightening. He also feels that if he receives a call from a former RCB teammate, he will gladly perform a job for them since he believes his cricket will complement McCullum and Stokes’ aggressive approach.
“He’s (McCullum) a very difficult person to say no to and I found that very, very hard. He’s very convincing. To be honest, I’d love to play under him and Stokesy. Both of them have that character about them. They’re very aggressive. I think I would suit their cricket a bit more and I think they feel I would suit them as well,”- he said
