Moeen Ali has announced his retirement from international cricket after being left out of England's upcoming white-ball series against Australia. The 37-year-old all-rounder last played for England in the 2024 T20 World Cup, where they lost to India in the semi-finals.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Moeen said he felt it was the right time to step away, especially since he wasn't picked for the Australia series. He mentioned that after playing a lot of cricket for England, it’s now time for the next generation to take over. Moeen reflected on his career, expressing pride in his contributions and acknowledging that he had done his part.
Moeen debuted for England in white-ball cricket during their 2014 tour of the West Indies. Throughout his 10-year career, he played 138 ODIs and 92 T20Is. He also made his Test debut in 2014 and went on to play 68 Tests for England. Across all formats, he scored 6678 runs, including eight centuries and 28 fifties, and took 366 wickets.
Moeen reflected on his time with the team, recalling how he started with Test cricket but later enjoyed white-ball cricket more under the captaincy of Eoin Morgan. While he believes he could still play, he admitted that it's time for the team to move forward. He also emphasized that making even small but crucial contributions to games gave him satisfaction. Moeen valued entertaining the fans, saying that as long as people enjoyed watching him play, he was happy, regardless of his performance.
Even though he is retiring from international cricket, Moeen will continue playing in franchise leagues. He is currently playing in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) with the Guyana Amazon Warriors. He also expressed interest in moving into coaching in the future, hoping to become one of the best coaches and learn from others like Brendon McCullum. Moeen wants to be remembered as a free spirit on the field who played with passion and flair, even if he sometimes made mistakes.
In the past year, Moeen also played for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, Joburg Super Kings in the SA20 league, and Chittagong Vikings in the Bangladesh Premier League.