T20 World Cup: Moeen Ali riding wave of form after starring in England’s thrashing of West Indies

As Moeen Ali ran back towards long-off on Saturday night, peering skyward in search of Evin Lewis’s miscued drive off Chris Woakes, there was time for many thoughts to fill his mind. 

Chief among them, presumably, was: don’t drop it.

The narrative of a difficult year seemed to demand just that. But Ali clung on superbly, setting the tone for a faultless fielding performance by England. 

Moeen Ali was named man of the match as England beat West Indies by six wickets Saturday

Soon, his off-breaks were removing Lendl Simmons and Shimron Hetmyer en route to one of his best T20 spells.

If Adil Rashid grabbed the attention with figures of four for two in a dismal West Indian total of 55, it was Ali who paved the way – and Ali who walked off with the match award. 

‘A catch like that gives you a bit of confidence,’ he said afterwards. ‘I think it settled my nerves.’

And the nerves were understandable – even for a player whose religious faith famously keeps his cricket in perspective, and helped him cope with being dropped midway through England’s successful 50-over World Cup campaign in 2019. 

Ali took two wickets for just 17 runs as England dominated the Windies on Saturday

The all-rounder took a brilliant catch to dismiss West Indies opener Evin Lewis in the second over

Ali’s figures of 2-17 were the most economical spell of bowling in his international career

More recent events, too, might have gnawed away at a less equable soul. 

Earlier this year, his tour of Sri Lanka was ruined by a positive Covid result, and shortly after a miscommunication by Joe Root gave the impression Ali wanted to leave the Test series in India. 

In fact, he was simply being rested-and-rotated out of the party, as per the pre-tour plans.

When Ali returned, Eoin Morgan ignored him completely for the five-match Twenty20 series. 

Eoin Morgan left Ali out of the five-match T20 series against India earlier this year

Behind the scenes, Ali’s belief in his captain was wavering. Then came his Test retirement, and general agreement that he had been exciting, exasperating, and probably unfulfilled.

But he enjoyed an uplifting time at the IPL, and played a big part in the final as Chennai Super Kings saw off Morgan’s Kolkata Knight Riders. 

He joined his England team-mates with a spring in his step.

On Saturday, for the first time in his England career, Ali bowled unchanged from the first over, and finished with two for 17 – his most economical four-over spell. 

Ali has since returned to the fold and was a crucial factor in England’s dominant win Saturday

For a player who in 2020 would regularly be taken off after six balls, it was a significant development.

‘He’s on top of a wave at the moment,’ said England head coach Chris Silverwood. 

‘He’s enjoying himself. He sees a real purpose to what he’s doing, and he sees how he fits into that team. Whenever he’s in that position, he’s a very dangerous character.

‘Around the dressing-room he adds a lot of value – the knowledge he’s got through cricket, but he’s also very good at pulling people together, which is an important cog in the wheel.

England coach Craig Silverwood believes Ali is riding ‘on top of a wave’ of good form 

Silverwood and Morgan (right) believe Ali can play a big role on slow pitches in the Middle East

‘With the form he’s in, the character in him is coming out. It’s great to see – he’s so much fun to have around, but we’re seeing that fun coming out on the field as well, so we’ve got to try to keep him in that position.’

A few months ago, the talk was that Liam Livingstone might be edging Ali out. 

Now, on the slow pitches of the Middle East, and with Livingstone enduring a mini-slump after his high-voltage summer, it’s clear that Ali is an integral part of England’s multi-pronged bowling line-up.

‘We watched the IPL very closely, how the wickets behaved, how you adapt to conditions,’ said Silverwood. 

Liam Livingstone was touted as a possible replacement for Ali earlier this year

‘We’ve got variation in the attack – left-arm, right-arm, spin, pace, whatever it may be, we’ve got everything there to cover off every eventuality.’

Mark Wood missed the demolition of West Indies because of his troublesome left ankle. 

And while Silverwood played down concerns, he is unlikely to be risked against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

But, unlike the current Test squad, England’s T20 group do not rely exclusively on Wood for pace, and Silverwood described the prospect of teaming him up with the rapid left-armer Tymal Mills as ‘exciting’.

Silverwood described left-arm seamer Tymal Mills as an ‘exciting option’ for England

‘You can see once the pace cranks up, people do strange things,’ he said after Mills took care of Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran. 

‘Pace does that to people. To have someone with that ability, and from a left-arm angle as well, is a real asset to us.’

So, too, is a cheery, engaged Moeen Ali. At 34, he may not have long left in international cricket. But the early signs in the UAE are that he is keen to make the most of it.