England all-rounder Moeen Ali retires from international cricket

The World Cup-winning player says he felt ‘the time was right’ to move on after representing England across all formats for 10 years.

England all-rounder Moeen Ali has retired from international cricket at age 37, having represented the country in all formats of the game since 2014.

Ali, the first Muslim and Asian-origin cricketer to captain England in T20 internationals (T20Is), announced his decision in an interview with former captain Nasser Hussain which was published in the Daily Mail on Sunday.

“I’m 37 years old and didn’t get picked for this month’s Australia series,” Ali said.

“I have played a lot of cricket for England. It’s time for the next generation, which was also explained to me. It felt the time was right. I’ve done my part.”

The Birmingham-born left-handed batter and right-arm spinner has played in 68 Tests, 138 one-day internationals (ODIs) and 92 T20Is for England since 2014, with his last international appearance in June.

Ali has scored five centuries in Tests and three in ODIs, also taking 366 wickets across all three formats. He was in the squad when England won the 50-over ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019 and the ICC T20 World Cup in 2022.

The reticent player said he was proud of his international career.

“When you first play for England, you don’t know how many games you are going to play. So to play nearly 300 … I know they were the best days of my life,” Ali said.

He holds the England record for the fastest half-century in T20Is having reached fifty in 16 balls against South Africa in 2022.

“I could hold on and try to play for England again, but I know in reality I won’t,” he added.

“Even retiring, I don’t feel it’s because I’m not good enough … but I get how things are, and the team needs to evolve into another cycle. It’s about being real to myself.

Ali said he planned to keep playing in franchise cricket and take up coaching in the future.