Outside Edge: It's daft for England to consider Moeen Ali a 'second spinner'

After 40 tests, 2,000 runs and over 100 wickets, Moeen should be confident enough in his own abilities, which are considerable

Moeen Ali He should also should accept once and for all that he is the team’s premier spinner (Getty Images)

As England’s men prepare for the fourth and final test against South Africa at Old Trafford they will be hoping they can avoid the yo-yo effect which has seen them follow wins with losses more often than not in recent times. A win – or a draw – in Manchester, will help to ease the criticism that the current test side lack consistency and the ability to battle when the pressure is on.

Yet one of the reasons for England’s lack of consistency is surely the frequent chopping and changing to the starting XI, especially over the last year or so. Don’t forget that in last summer’s series victory against Sri Lanka, Alex Hales, Nick Compton and James Vince were all fixtures in the top five. All now appear to be off the selectors’ radar.

Meanwhile, Moeen Ali has batted everywhere between 4 and 8, sometimes giving the impression of being a batsman who bowls, on other occasions a bowler who bats. Indeed, England’s indecision over Moeen’s role in the team feels sometimes emblematic of their broader, uncertain approach.

Most recently, England have been at pains to make clear that Moeen is first and foremost a batsman, although in the current series he has only once in six innings scored more than 27. On the other hand, he has taken eighteen wickets across the three matches at fewer than 15 runs each. Still, when Liam Dawson features, Moeen becomes – seemingly by his own choice as well as the management’s – the ‘second spinner’.

This nonsense appears to be a way of reducing the pressure that Moeen feels when the spin-bowling burden lies on his shoulders alone – and if that genuinely improves his performance, it is understandable on the face of it.

But let’s think about it from Liam Dawson’s point of view. When he’s in the side, he is told he is the number one spinner yet as soon as England want an extra seam option, he finds himself on the sidelines. In other words, he’s a comfort blanket for someone else in the side, easily dispensed with. It hardly seems the obvious way to motivate a young man trying to press his international claims.

Moeen Ali's hat-trick fired England to victory in the third Test (Getty)

After 40 tests, 2,000 runs and over 100 wickets, Moeen should be confident enough in his own abilities, which are considerable. And while he might in theory like to bat in the top five, he always seems a more natural fit for England as a flashing number seven (especially in this country).

He should also accept once and for all that he is the team’s premier spinner, who will often be reliant only on part-timers for company. On that front Tom Westley can have a role to play alongside Joe Root.

By the time the Ashes comes round, England will need a settled starting line-up in which each player knows – and has unabashed confidence – in his role. Australia must not be allowed to prey on uncertainty come November.

Gender debate misses the point over England's World Cup victory

It is nearly two weeks since England’s stunning World Cup victory against India at Lord’s and the triumph is still resonating. With the Kia Super League set to begin next week, the attention given to Heather Knight and her teammates could not have come at a better time. If the sun shines, crowds for the Vipers, Diamonds, Stars, Storm, Thunder and Lightning will surely turn out in record numbers.

There have been a few contrarians who have done their best to undermine the upsurge in interest in the women’s game – notably Dominic Lawson, who pooh-poohed the quality on show at Lord’s despite not being at the match.


 Anya Shrubsole's late charge clinched victory for England 
 (Getty)

In fact though, the women’s game has piqued the interest of a broader audience precisely because of the quality on display. To conclude that people would be watching if they genuinely thought the cricket was poor or unexciting is disingenuous to the point of being perverse.

Watching the game at Lord’s as a seasoned cricket spectator I did not spend my time thinking that Katherine Brunt wasn’t as fast as James Anderson. Instead, along with the other 25,000 people in the ground I felt privileged to be watching not only one of the most exciting matches I have ever seen, but one in which so many players shone.

From Sarah Taylor’s wicket-keeping and Anya Shrubsole’s bowling to Nat Sciver’s all-round prowess and Poonam Raut’s batting, this was a World Cup final which was much less about the gender of the players than it was, quite simply, about great cricket.