For all the shout-outs about the depth of talent in all departments in English cricket, Moeen Ali somehow always held his place.
When Graeme Swann bid adieu to international cricket – leaving England to pick up the pieces from their impending Ashes loss – the selectors turned to Ali.
He made an immediate impact in whites, decimating top-notch sides with relative ease. His batting has a flamboyance attached to it and he’s the sort of batsmen who can bat at any position, and still amass a useful contribution.
However, is Ali regressing in his overall performance?
It may be a huge call, but will the English selectors make it by omitting Ali and giving Jack Leach a big push?
In the coloured clothing, England made their intentions to move on from Moeen Ali after back to back defeats to Sri Lanka and Australia in an eventually successful campaign.
In those crushing losses, Ali’s requirement as a player was more to do with scoring runs. It couldn’t have presented the all-rounder with golden opportunities like those give him the benefit of the doubt.
Alas, Moeen Ali’s flaws with tight lines and brashness got the better of him.
(AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
At the radar to replace Ali, the closest contender among the lot remains Jack Leach.
Jack Leach plotted a rescue mission, stood at the very middle and pulled out England from the brink of humiliation. Leach, who averaged a pitiful 4.66 backed up his rendition of a five-wicket haul against the Australians at Canterbury.
The 28-year-old exemplified the intent quite early on in the innings, cracking as many as 16 boundaries.
The loss of Rory Burns proved to be a blessing in disguise as Jason Roy, who followed by injecting his ambushing approach in the most extended format.
Boyd Rankin – who had a limited but an effective spell in the first innings – threatened to make an impact as massive as Tim Murtaugh.
However, an unfazed Leach dealt with the short ball safely. He did lob an easy chance to Gary Wilson – the lanky left-hander negotiated the precarious deliveries quite securely.
His slow left-arm orthodox has also yielded 20 wickets in five Tests.
Ali’s place is in question undeniably, but the likes of Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow and the other batsmen have a different set of concerns ahead of themselves too.
The Englishmen have plenty of work to do if they are to survive the wrath of a balanced and venomous pace attack from Australia.
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