Overlooked for England’s upcoming white-ball series against Australia, Moeen Ali has announced his retirement from all international cricket.
The all-rounder last represented England in their semi-final loss to India during the 2024 T20 World Cup in Guyana.
“I’m 37 years old and didn’t get picked for this month’s Australia series,” Moeen revealed in an interview with the Daily Mail.
“I’ve played a lot of cricket for England.
It’s time for the next generation, and that was also explained to me.
It felt like the right time.
I’ve done my part.”
Moeen made his white-ball debut for England during their 2014 tour of the West Indies and went on to feature in 138 ODIs and 92 T20Is in a decade-long career.
He also made his Test debut later that year at Lord’s against Sri Lanka and played in 68 Tests overall.
Across the three formats, Moeen amassed 6,678 runs, including eight centuries and 28 fifties, and took 366 wickets.
“I’m very proud.
When you first play for England, you don’t know how many games you’ll get.
To have played nearly 300 is a great achievement.
My early years were focused on Test cricket, but once Morgs [Eoin Morgan] took over the white-ball setup, it became more fun.
But Test cricket was always the real deal.
“Even now, I’ve tried to be realistic.
I could have held on, hoping for another chance to play for England, but I know deep down it wouldn’t happen.
It’s not that I don’t think I’m good enough — I still believe I can play.
But I understand how things are, and the team needs to move into a new cycle.
It’s about being honest with myself.
“People often overlook the small contributions in matches.
It might have only been 20 or 30 runs, but they were often crucial.
For me, it was always about making an impact.
I know what I brought to the side, both on and off the field.
As long as people enjoyed watching me, whether I succeeded or not, I was happy with that.”
Moeen confirmed that he plans to continue playing franchise cricket and has expressed interest in coaching in the future.
He is currently playing in CPL 2024 with the defending champions, Guyana Amazon Warriors.
“I’ll keep playing some franchise cricket because I still love the game.
But coaching is something I really want to pursue — I want to be one of the best.
I can learn a lot from Baz [Brendon McCullum].
I hope people remember me as a free spirit, someone who played some nice shots and some bad ones, but hopefully, they enjoyed watching me.”
In the past year, Moeen has been active in various leagues, featuring for CSK in the IPL, Joburg Super Kings in the SA20, and Chittagong Vikings in the BPL.
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