Moeen Ali Likely To Retire From Test Cricket: Reports

Top England batting all-rounder Moeen Ali could become a casualty of the gruelling season ahead and the 34-year-old veteran of 64 Tests is understood to be not interested in the "prospect of an extended time away from home" for the ICC T20 World Cup in the UAE and the subsequent Ashes series Down Under.

In a report published by espncricinfo, the website said that Moeen, who also is an integral part of the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings side that is a title contender in IPL 2021, "has decided he no longer has the hunger to play the longest format. In particular, he is uncomfortable with the prospect of an extended time away from home in the coming months as a likely member of both the T20 World Cup and Ashes squads."

Moeen, who has scored close to 3,000 Test runs and is just five wickets shy of 200 Test wickets, is understood to have informed the England chief coach Chris Silverwood, and skipper Joe Root about his intentions.

"He is keen to continue his career for England in white-ball cricket and is also expected to continue to play county and franchise cricket. It seems unlikely he will continue to play first-class cricket but no firm decision has yet been taken on that," the report added.

Moeen, who has also played more than a century of ODI games and has been a prolific run-getter for his side, would add to the selection dilemma of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), which has been kept on tenterhooks by several top cricketers who have reservations about going to Australia due to stringent Covid-19 protocols in the country.