England all-rounder Moeen Ali has retired from
international cricket, saying "the time is right" to move on.
Moeen played all three formats for England after making his
international debut in 2014.
The 37-year-old was part of the white-ball squads that won
the 50-over World Cup on home soil in 2019 and the T20 World Cup in 2022.
He first retired from Test cricket in 2021 but came out of
retirement two years later for the home Ashes series against Australia, which
England ultimately drew.
Off-spinner Moeen played 68 Tests, 138 one-day
internationals and 92 Twenty20s for England.
The vice-captain in the white-ball team, he also led England
in one one-day international and 12 T20s.
He missed out on selection for England's upcoming white-ball
series against Australia.
Announcing his decision in an interview with Nasser
Hussain, external in the Daily Mail, Moeen said it was "time
for the next generation" in English cricket.
"I could hold on and try to play for England again, but
I know in reality I won't," Moeen said.
"Even retiring, I don't feel it's because I'm not good
enough - I still feel I can play.
"But I get how things are, and the team needs to evolve
into another cycle. It's about being real to myself."
A stylish left-handed batter, Moeen scored five Test and
three ODI centuries.
He also took 204 Test wickets, along with 111 in ODIs and 51
in T20 cricket for England.
His final international appearance was against India in the
semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in June, which England lost by 68 runs.
"Tests were by far the best format," Moeen added,
in an interview with Test Match Special.
"It's something that as a young player, I felt it was
the most important, it was the more proper form of cricket.
"White-ball was more fun, I almost saw is as time to
wind down and relax from red-ball cricket, especially when you would play right
after."
Elegant, tough and a big spinner of the ball - what they
said
Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook, speaking on
Test Match Special: "When I look back at Mo, he is probably the
most selfless player to play for England in terms of he would do anything the
team required.
"He batted from one to eight, I think he also batted at
nine in one game. He opened the batting in Abu Dhabi, which allowed Adil Rashid
to play, he came back in and batted at three in those Ashes under Brendon
McCullum as well.
"He would do anything the team required, probably to
the hindrance of his batting - you'll remember, when he was picked, he was
picked as a batsman who bowled a bit of part-time spin, because we didn't have
any other spinners, and we thought he was the best option because he spun it
really hard, and we thought four seamers and him as an option was the way to
go.
"Mo was a lot tougher than people gave him credit for.
Because he was such an elegant stroke player, people didn't really appreciate
that in tough moments he was a clutch cricketer as well."
Ex-England spinner Phil Tufnell: "Moeen was
a silky smooth batter, and a destructive batter as well. That cover drive, how
many times have we seen that? Not really a lot of foot movement, and then just
absolute timing.
"Fantastic batsman and he seemed a reluctant spinner,
didn't he? But then once he got into it and realised he could really affect the
game I think he really started working on it and as Cooky said, he really spun
the ball hard. He was one of those guys where you could throw him the ball in
the fourth innings and he could do a job - more than a job - beautifully."
