Moeen Ali's selfless act could be the deciding factor in Ashes series

After the first Ashes Test in Edgbaston, an image of Moeen Ali's sore finger was doing the rounds on Twitter. A blister on the finger was inevitable though. Graeme Swann, the only England off-spinner apart from Moeen with 200 Test wickets, wrote in his autobiography about dealing with a sore finger at the start of every red-ball season. 

Moeen hadn't bowled much even with the white-ball coming into the Ashes. In the Indian Premier League (IPL), he bowled just 26 overs in 15 matches. That's under two overs per game on average.

Prior to the Ashes 2023, Moeen had played just four first-class matches in four years. He had retired from Tests and then established himself as a superb middle-over spin-hitter who can bowl a couple of overs especially if there's a match-up in the franchise circuit. So when Ben Stokes texted him about an Ashes comeback, Moeen thought he wasn't serious. Moeen went "LOL".

So, how has Moeen's comeback been so far? A batting average of 23.4 and a wicket per 57.2 runs conceded - pretty below average numbers. But the all-rounder's contribution in the ongoing series which he calls "the biggest since 2005" go beyond numbers.

Ollie Pope's shoulder injury had England in real trouble. He has gotten reasonable success at number three. Someone had to feel the void. Joe Root, England's best batter, averages 39 at that position, much lower than his career average. There were suggestions of Ben Stokes batting at three. But England opted for Harry Brook.

It was an unfamiliar batting position for the youngster and quite naturally he failed in the first innings in the third Test in Headingley. Everyone knew he was better-suited for number five, especially after scoring so heavily and so quickly there. 

England needed 251 to win in Headingley and when Ben Duckett got out in the 10th over, there was a surprise. Moeen walked out to bat instead of Brook. If you look at Moeen's score (5 off 15), you'll think the move didn't work out. But it delayed Brook's entry and in his preferred batting position, Brook excelled and his glorious 75 sealed the game for England.

It was later revealed that Moeen himself requested McCullum to send him at three. Moeen knew the hardness of the new ball would probably be too much for him. He was cleaned up by a 90 mph Mitchell Starc delivery. 

But Moeen made a selfless but conscious decision to help the team. "If I can even just play 10 overs and we get through that hardness of the ball, it's probably easier for the other guys to come in - especially in a chase like that. I just thought it was better, and they obviously all agreed," he explained his decision. 

Moeen has done that many times for his first-class sides but doing that up against the world's best bowling attack when you are short of runs is a big decision. But he didn't think how bad his stats would look if he failed. More than himself, he thought about the team and how he could help his team-mates perform better, a philosophy followed by the England captain Stokes.

"I'm at a stage now where I would much prefer to leave a mark on other people's careers than look to make mine more established," Stokes said. Moeen did exactly that in Headingley. 

England thought the move worked for them and stuck with Moeen at three in Old Trafford. The southpaw batted like a proper top-order batter. His inconsistency in whites for England made people forget how good a batter he is. But up against a world-class attack, he batted like a proper number three. 

And it was not a chancey knock. According to CricViz, Moeen's innings was the one with least false shot percentage in the series and when he got out on 54, it was the highest score for a number three in the series. 

With the ball, he often lacked control but the wickets he has got so far are important ones. He has got Marnus Labuschagne twice, Steven Smith once and Travis Head twice. These are Australia's best players. 

His 54 off 82 on day two of the fourth Ashes Test was overshadowed by a gigantic Zak Crawley innings but it was his measured knock that gave Crawley a lot of confidence. When Moeen hit Pat Cummins for two boundaries towards the end of the first session, Crawley was striking at just over 50. He was a different player in the next session.

"He hit a cover drive for 4 off Pat Cummins and said, 'shot of the day, that'. He was right - it was the shot of the day," said Crawley.

On a day when he reached a massive landmark of 3000 Test runs and 200 wickets, Moeen was happier for the team than himself. "It was one of the best days I've had from a team point of view," he told Sky Sports. "I felt I got out at the right time and it was the right time to get Rooty [Joe Root in]. He scores at a good rate and takes the pressure off others".

In his first media briefing as full-time Test captain, Stokes asked for "ten selfless cricketers" alongside him. Probably that's why he turned to Moeen when Jack Leach got injured. His decision to bat at three brought the best out of Brook and England stayed alive in the Ashes with a win in Headingley. His fifty in Old Trafford set a platform for the rest of the batters and the day ended up as one of England's most extraordinary Ashes days. Moeen's bold but selfless decision to bat at three, thus, could very well be the deciding factor of the series.