London [UK], June 13 : England all-rounder Moeen Ali disclosed that he may not have ended his Test retirement for the Ashes series against Australia had Ben Stokes not been the England skipper and persuaded him to reconsider his decision and return to the longest format of cricket.
Ali, who had announced his retirement from Test cricket back in 2021, was included in England's squad for the first two Ashes Tests against Australia, starting from June 16 onwards. He replaced Somerset's Jack Leach, who was withdrawn from the original 16-player squad on Sunday after sustaining a low back stress fracture, which rules him out of the five-match Ashes Test series.
Asked whether any other captain could have coaxed him out of Test retirement, Moeen said: "Probably not, no."
"Stokesy messaged me with a question mark: 'Ashes?'. I hadn't heard the news on Leachy at the time so I just said 'LOL', thinking he's taking the mick. Then the news came through and I had a chat with him. That was it," Ali was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.
Ali, 35, who retired from Test cricket at the end of the 2021 summer, has reversed his decision following discussions with Test captain Stokes, Test head coach Brendon McCullum and managing director of England Men's Cricket Rob Key.
He will be looking to add to his 64 Test caps. He has scored 2,914 Test runs and has 195 wickets at Test level. He has five centuries and 14 fifties in the format and his inclusion will add a lot to the depth of England's batting. He will celebrate his 36th birthday during the first Test at Edgbaston on June 18.
"I spoke to Stokesy about how he talks to batters. Look, it would be perfect for the way you play'. There are no question marks over any shots you play which gives me licence to play a few more rash shots, I guess. Even with the ball, he is more on the aggressive side. I know I go for runs but Stokesy also knows there are some wicket-taking deliveries in between. That's all he cares about," he added.
"I have never been able to hold an end up. When I have, it's when I've been taking wickets. That's the only time I have been able to build any kind of pressure. Ben and Baz [McCullum] know that. I am sure they know what they are going to get from me. There are not going to be lots of maidens!" Ali said.
"I'd expect [Australia] to attack me, 100 per cent, if I was them I'd do the same. I'm not expecting them to defend me. I'm expecting them to come after me, which could be dangerous because Stokesy likes having the fielders up. I could go for a lot of runs. We'll see.
England Men's Ashes Test Squad: Ben Stokes (c), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood.
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