New Delhi: Moeen Ali bid farewell to all international cricket on Sunday after being overlooked for England’s upcoming white-ball series against Australia. The all-rounder’s last appearance for England came at the 2024 T20 World Cup in Guyana when England lost to India in the semi-final. Moeen had been a regular for England in all three formats and was a valuable asset to the team.
“I’m 37 years old and didn’t get picked for this month’s Australia series. I’ve played a lot of cricket for England. It’s time for the next generation, which was also explained to me. It felt the time was right. I’ve done my part,” Moeen said in a Daily Mail interview.
Moeen debuted for England in their white-ball tour of West Indies in 2014 and represented the Three Lions in 68 Tests, 138 ODIs, and 92 T20Is in a career that lasted a decade. Later in the year, Sri Lanka visited England and Moeen was handed his maiden Test cap at the Lord’s. He finishes with a total of 6678 runs which includes eight centuries and 28 fifties. His right-arm offbreak got him 366 wickets for England across the three formats.
“I’m very proud. When you first play for England, you don’t know how many games you’re going to play. So to play nearly 300… My first few years were all about Test cricket. Once Morgs (Eoin Morgan) took over the one-day stuff, that was more fun. But Test cricket was proper cricket,” Moeen added. He also reflected on the fact that he can still continue but knows that the time is right for him and England Cricket.
“Even now, I’ve tried to be realistic. I could hold on and try to play for England again, but I know in reality I won’t. Even retiring, I don’t feel it’s because I’m not good enough. I still feel I can play. But I get how things are, and the team needs to evolve into another cycle. It’s about being real to myself,” Moeen stressed.
He also weighed in on the fact that low scores are also valuable contributions to the team and all that matters is making an impact. He noted that people forget about a player making an impact in the game, be it scoring 20-30 runs. He said that he knew what he brought to the side, on and off the field and as long as he felt people enjoyed watching him play, whether or not he did well, he was happy with that.
Moeen to continue franchise cricket
Moeen added that he will continue to play franchise cricket across the globe and might see himself getting into coaching. He currently plies his trade for defending champions Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2024
“A bit of franchise cricket, because I still love playing. But coaching is something I want to do. I want to be one of the best. I can learn a lot from Baz (Brendon McCullum),” he said. Last year, he was seen in action at the Indian Premier League (IPL) where he played for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and was a part of Joburg Super Kings in SA20 and of Chittagong Vikings in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
“I hope people remember me as a free spirit. I played some nice shots and some bad shots, but hopefully people enjoyed watching me.” Moeen added.
Moeen Ali has announced his retirement from international cricket after being ignored for the upcoming white-ball series between England and Australia. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
