England cricketer Moeen Ali on Sunday (12th June) expressed his desire to make a comeback in Test cricket despite announcing his retirement from the longest format of the game last year.

Following Oval Test against India in September 2021, Ali had called time on his red-ball career to focus more on ODI and T20 cricket. His sudden retirement came as a surprise for many, especially after he was performing decently in the traditional format of the game. 

However, there have been many speculations about him coming out of the Test retirement in the past few weeks. Now, the all-rounder has officially made himself available for selection in Tests and is hoping to return to the squad for England's tour to Pakistan, which is slated to take place later this year. 

Terming his position as "officially unretired", Moeen said he found it almost impossible to deny McCullum's request about the same. The all-rounder now believes he'll be better suited to the new coach's aggressive strategies than the old management.

"I spoke to McCullum this morning, and we did discuss Pakistan this winter. The door is always open, and yeah, I suppose I am officially unretired. He is a very difficult person to say no to. I find that very, very hard. 

“He is very convincing and to be honest I would love to play under him and Ben Stokes. They are both very aggressive and I think I would suit their cricket a bit more," Moeen Ali told BBC Test Match Special. 

Ali said that having already played Pakistan Super League (PSL), he is definitely ready to play in Pakistan. 

“When, or if, Baz McCullum wants me, I'll definitely play in Pakistan. I have played Pakistan Super League out there a few years ago but it's not the same," he said. 

Ali expressed his desire to play Test cricket in Pakistan. Terming it a historic event, he said that it would be very appealing for him. 

"To travel with an England side there having family background from that part of the world will be amazing. It would be a historic event because of England not touring there for so many years. I know the support and love you can get out there, they love cricket. It's really something that's very appealing for sure," he said. 

Ali has represented England in 64 Tests, in which he has scored 2914 runs at an average of 28.29 to go with 5 hundreds and 14 fifties. With the bowl, he took 195 wickets with 5 five-wicket hauls and 1 ten-wicket haul. 

(BBC Test match special)