"Had Joe Root and Alastair Cook as my captains but Stokesy was just different" - Moeen Ali hails Ben Stokes' captaincy of skills
England all-rounder Moeen Ali has praised current skipper Ben Stokes for his ability to back the spinners and set unique field placements.
Ali did a U-turn on his Test retirement to come back and play in the 2023 Ashes after an injury to Jack Leach. Despite mediocre numbers with batting and bowling averages of 25.71 and 51.44, respectively, the 36-year-old played in four of the five Tests.
Yet, England bounced back from a 0-2 deficit to draw the series and retain the Ashes urn.
In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Ali, who also played under Joe Root and Sir Alastair Cook, spoke glowingly about Stokes' captaincy skills by saying:
"The way he backs his spinners - even when I played in the UK, he had [innovative] field settings against Australia [like] a guy dead-straight behind the [bowler's] arm. He is always willing to do things like that. I had Joe Root and Alastair Cook as my captains [previously] but Stokesy was just different. Everyone knows that."
"The way he's taking the game and team forward, it's really amazing. In such a short period of time, he took England from not playing great cricket to amazing and entertaining cricket. Everyone is talking about Bazball. [The team themselves] actually don't believe much in [the term]. They just want to play this brand of cricket. I think he is a special captain and a special player," he added.
With England's Test cricket in turmoil, Stokes took over as permanent captain in mid-2022 and has changed the side's fortunes in partnership with head coach Brendon McCullum.
Following the duo's association, England had won 13 of their 18 Tests, including an away series whitewash against Pakistan, before the ongoing series against India.
"They have carried their own" - Moeen Ali on English spinners in the India series
Moeen Ali praised the England spinners for their performances in the ongoing India series despite the series outcome.
With the injury to Jack Leach during the first Test, the visitors have rotated between the inexperienced trio of Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, and Rehan Ahmed in the spin department.
"They have done really well. It's not easy. India is a very difficult place. I know the wickets have spun nicely, still they have carried their own. I thought Hartley did really well in the first game. No matter what wicket, on debut, under pressure, the way he has battled is really, really good," said Ali.
"This is a very inexperienced bowling attack. It is not even experienced in domestic cricket. You have to give them a lot of credit. They have kept England in the games. They bowled well. Hartley bowled really well in the first game. Rehan hasn't taken wickets but he has learned a lot. I think he has changed the way he bowled in red-ball cricket. They have done an excellent job. People don't realise how hard it is against such good players of spin," he added.
While Hartley is the second-leading wicket-taker in the series with 20 scalps, Bashir and Rehan have chipped in with 13 and 11 wickets, respectively.
However, their lack of experience eventually proved costly at certain crucial junctures, resulting in England surrendering the series.