Moeen Ali has confirmed his international retirement at the age of 37, bringing an end to a career in which he won 308 international caps across formats, including 68 in Tests.
The retirement is little surprise. Having already retired from Test cricket, Moeen was dropped for this month’s T20 series against Australia, with England attempting to build a new white-ball team in the run-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup and the 2027 ODI World Cup. But it confirms the end of a distinguished international career.
Moeen will continue playing in franchise cricket around the world, where his combination of left-handed power hitting and off spin makes him a highly coveted player. He eventually hopes to become a coach.
“I could hold on and try to play for England again, but I know in reality I won’t,” Moeen told the Daily Mail. “It felt the time was right. I’ve done my part.”
Moeen was among only six players to feature in both the 2019 ODI World Cup and 2022 T20 World Cup wins. In the T20 World Cup victory, sealed against Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Moeen was vice-captain.
Together with his vital role in England’s white-ball sides, Moeen also featured in 68 Test matches, including playing all five games when England regained the Ashes in 2015. After Jack Leach’s injury, Moeen made a dramatic return for last summer’s Ashes, which were drawn 2-2.
Initially picked as a bowling allrounder at No 8 in the 2023 Ashes, Moeen volunteered to bat at No 3 midway through the third Test, to allow Harry Brook to shuffle down to his favoured role at No 5. It was an act that embodied the selflessness that characterised Moeen’s international career, often sacrificing his individual statistics for the good of the side.
Remarkably, Moeen batted in every position from opening to No 9 over his Test career. While at his best as a free-scoring middle order batsman, he embraced standing in as opener against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in 2015. He batted at No 8 in 22 Test matches, a berth which many considered was too low to maximise his batting talent.
Before winning Test selection, Moeen was primarily a batsman in county cricket, first breaking into the professional game at Warwickshire, and then enjoying a distinguished period at Worcestershire before returning to his home county.
Moeen made five Test centuries – two apiece against India and Sri Lanka and one against Pakistan – and finished with a final Test average of 28.12. While his batting talent was such that Moeen will feel he should have averaged in the mid-30s, his 204 Test wickets, at an average of 37.31, reflect how he developed his off spin for England’s needs.
In 2017, during a brilliant series against South Africa, Moeen clinched England’s victory at The Oval with a hat-trick. He was player of the match six times in Test cricket, reflecting his relish for delivering match-winning performances in the fourth innings of games. Moeen took 63 wickets at just 23.2 in the fourth innings of Tests, which included bowling England to victories over India at Southampton in both 2014 and 2018. He signed off with three for 76 in the series-levelling victory over Australia in last year’s Ashes, dismissing Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh and Pat Cummins as England closed out a 49-run win.