England cricket board announced the England squad for the upcoming third Test match in Ahmedabad and one major name missing from the list was that of all-rounder Moeen Ali.
Ali was the star of the England team, despite their 317-run loss to India in the recently concluded second Test in Chennai. He picked 8 wickets in total and made 49 runs, standing out amidst the rubbles of the England team’s performance. This was also Ali’s first Test since August 2019, when he had decided to take a break from Test cricket saying that he has lost interest in the five-day format.
However, it was announced that Moeen Ali had opted out of the remaining two Test matches against India and will fly back home for a break before rejoining the England team for the five T20I matches, which will also be played in Ahmedabad from March 12. He has been named in the full-strength T20I England squad keeping in mind the T20 World Cup in India.
This decision of Moeen Ali to take a break and opt out of the last two Tests didn’t go down well with former England captains Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan.
Saying that he was shocked at Ali’s decision to not play, Kevin Pietersen tweeted, “We played in 2005 on terrestrial TV and BEAT Aus. It changed the game of cricket in this country. Cricket goes back to terrestrial TV for this HUGE series and England don’t pick their best team for it. Moeen Ali now going home after ONE Test. Wow!”
On the other hand, Michael Vaughan recalled Ali saying that Test cricket was a priority and he wanted to help England get back the Ashes on the upcoming tour in Australia.
“I thought Test cricket was the main priority after 2019 to make sure England try and get back the Ashes !!!!! Why is it then that the Test team is being swapped & changed every week but the T20 team are at full strength !!!!! Moeen now off home after 1 Test in 18 months !!!,” Vaughan tweeted.
"England Men have named a 17-strong squad for the third Test against India starting in Ahmedabad on Wednesday 24 February. Moeen Ali will return to England for a break while Jonny Bairstow and Mark Wood join the squad having been rested for the first two Tests," the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in an official statement.
England squad for Third Test:
Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
