PAUL NEWMAN: Moeen Ali’s Ashes call-up makes perfect sense

Ben Stokes typically did not waste words when he texted his great friend Moeen Ali and asked him to answer an emergency call to become England’s Ashes spinner.

‘He just messaged me with one word and a question mark – ‘Ashes?’ said Moeen, back with red ball in hand at England’s first Edgbaston practice session yesterday. ‘I hadn’t heard the news about Leachy at the time so I thought he was taking the mick. I just replied ‘LOL’.

From the briefest of exchanges came the most unexpected of call-ups, with Moeen coming out of the red-ball retirement he insisted only last winter was permanent to replace the injured Jack Leach and step straight into the Ashes fray on Friday.

Moeen was his usual honest, self-deprecating self here yesterday, admitting he took his time before accepting the call after talks with Stokes, coach Brendon McCullum and managing director Rob Key. But in the end it was an offer he simply could not refuse.

Specifically, it was an offer he could not refuse from Stokes, the captain who has done so much to transform the England team with a style of cricket that could have been made for an attacking off-spinning all-rounder disillusioned and lost to Test cricket two years ago.

England added Moeen Ali to their squad for the first two Ashes Tests against Australia 

A shortage in available spin bowlers meant that England turned to the 35-year-old 

‘Probably not,’ said Moeen when asked if he would have come out of the Test wilderness for any captain other than Stokes. ‘I spent a lot of time with Stokesey in the IPL (they were both at Chennai) talking to him and he’s just different.

‘His mind-set is so different to other captains I’ve had previously. I’m not saying they were bad but everything is just so positive now. It’s not just the results but the way they are playing. He is the kind of guy you want to play for.’

And England want Moeen, who turns 36 on Sunday, to play for them. It looked an unlikely move when Leach was ruled out of the whole Ashes with a stress fracture of the back, not least because Moeen was so definitive in refusing the chance to play in Pakistan.

But as soon as that one-word text was sent by Stokes it made perfect sense. England did not want to risk Rehan Ahmed at such an early stage of his career and view Will Jacks still as a destructive batsman who bowls a bit. Liam Dawson, meanwhile, was just a little too conservative for England’s modern tastes.

Which pretty much left Moeen out on his own, a sad reflection on the dearth of spin bowling options in county cricket but a selection that nobody within the game can justifiably quibble with. Moeen remains a class act and, crucially, a man born to play Bazball.

Even Prime Minister Rishi Sunak urged Moeen to answer England’s SOS – ‘that didn’t make any difference really because I’d already made up my mind by then,’ he said – and a surreal 10 days for the local lad will continue today with a visit to Windsor Castle to accept his OBE. Then the even bigger occasion on Friday of the Ashes on his home ground.

‘I did have to think about it but it was the Ashes,’ said Moeen, when asked what made this approach different to his refusal to face Pakistan last winter. ‘It’s such a big series and the cricket the guys are playing is so exciting. This is an era I want to play in. I think I would have done a lot better had it been like this when I first played Test cricket.’

The Ashes remain the pinnacle for a two-time white-ball World Cup winner who appeared to be moving closer towards a franchise future and was approached to play in the new American T20 League later this summer before England told him he couldn’t go.

England opted for Moeen over spinners Rehan Ahmed (above), Will Jacks and Liam Dawson

The wicket-taking all-rounder expects to be attacked by Australia’s batters during the series

‘The 2015 Ashes was a series no-one seems to remember for some reason but it was massive for me,’ said Moeen. ‘It was one of the highlights of my career, right up there with the World Cups.

‘That’s because the Ashes isn’t easy, as we know. So many good players have not won an Ashes series. But I’m keen to win number two now. This series is going to be huge.’

Moeen looks sure to play and will be backed both to attack with his sharply spinning off-breaks that can be expensive and with the bat, strengthening the tail at eight.

‘Stokesey just said to me ‘this should be perfect for the way you play’,’ said Moeen. ‘There are no question marks over any shots you play. So I can play a few more rash ones! Even with the ball I can be more aggressive. I know I’ll go for runs but Stokesey also knows there will be some wicket-taking deliveries which is all he cares about really.’

There was a boost for England yesterday when the captain went through another stint of bowling on the Edgbaston outfield and looks increasingly likely to play at least some part in this Test with the ball.

Ali revealed the vital role that Ben Stokes (pictured) played in his return to Test cricket

That leaves England with one big call to make and must choose between Stuart Broad and Mark Wood for the last seam bowling place, with Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson both looking to have recovered yesterday from minor injuries.

Broad would bring his big-game temperament and the chance to make an opening Ashes statement against the man he had in his pocket in 2019 in David Warner while Wood offers that all-important extra pace, not least against Travis Head who looks susceptible to the short, fast stuff. It is a big call for England and not an easy one.

One man they are certainly happy to have back in their ranks is Moeen, at least for the first two Tests and, depending on how things go at Edgbaston and Lord’s, potentially the whole of this eagerly anticipated series. ‘I’m the kind of guy who goes with the flow,’ he added. ‘Let’s play these two games and see what happens.’

It is unlikely to be dull.