"Teams Want To Copy Us" - Moeen Ali On The Much-Discussed England's Template

Star all-rounder Moeen Ali believes it is acceptable for rival sides to “emulate” England’s spectacular success in international competitions in white-ball cricket.

England just won the ODI and T20 World Cup trophies in Australia, making them the first side to do it in the same cycle. Following England’s disastrous World Cup performance in 2015, Eoin Morgan introduced a dramatic shift in thinking and playing style, and Jos Buttler is building on his legacy.

England Is Going To Be Even Better: Moeen Ali

Moeen Ali, a key player on the English white-ball team, thinks it’s only natural for other teams to imitate their aggressive style of play. The all-conquering Australian side of the 1990s and the early 2000s was another comparison he made.

“The template was spoken about long ago. I feel we have become a better team now. Morgs (Morgan) did a brilliant job to change the mindset, which is the hardest part, to put the template there.

“Now, we can adapt to different conditions, different teams, use different bowlers in the death and there is flexibility in the batting order. This team is going to get even better,” Moeen told PTI on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi T10 League.

The 35-year-old commented on the England model, which has emerged as the gold standard in international cricket: “Whenever a team is winning, for example, Australia. They used to win all the trophies. Everyone wanted to copy them. Now, England have won 50 over and T20 world titles and teams want to copy us.”

Moeen Ali claimed that England’s home losses to South Africa and India earlier this year served as a timely wake-up call for them.

“We played South Africa and India in the summer. They beat us because they were playing the same brand of cricket we were playing.

“So we knew we had to get better and it is a good template to follow. I won’t be surprised if other teams follow that template,” said Moeen, who is captaining the Morrisville Samp Army here.

You Cannot Play All Formats Now: Moeen Ali

Three days after the T20 World Cup final, England had an ODI series against Australia, so they had little time to enjoy their victory in Australia.

The schedule has more busier than ever because to the expansion of franchise cricket globally. Cricketers who play three different formats find it very difficult to balance their workload, which forces them to take frequent breaks.

“The problem is if you are a young player, you can’t play all formats now. Earlier you could. Now people are getting pigeon holed into Test or T20 players. I don’t think it is good for them and good for the game.

“In India, Australia and England players get paid quite well but in other countries they don’t. So at times they miss out on international cricket for franchise cricket.

“A lot of people say IPL is there (makes calendar more crowded) but IPL is a massive tournament, you can’t say that.

“For example, a West Indies player rather play in the IPL for money and exposure than (international cricket).” ‘

Mindset In Bilateral Rubbers And ICC Events Is Very Different: Moeen Ali

England had previously lost to India at home, but in the World Cup semifinals, they humiliated them with a 10-wicket victory.

India is still waiting for their first ICC trophy since 2013, whereas England has won two world championships in the last three years.

When asked why India can’t win international competitions yet consistently excels in bilateral cricket:

In his words: “The pressure is different, we felt a lot of pressure this time as we were desperate to win the trophy.

“We also know the other teams are feeling the same pressure. In a bilateral series, there is a lot to consider and you can rest players.

“When it comes to ICC, there are different venues, the pressure is different. That is where the mindset comes into play.

“If you have the team ethos where you don’t worry about getting out, that helps. We played our best cricket against India that day. If you play a certain brand of cricket you will fail but you have to stick with the players as long as you can.”

On his T10 experience, Moeen Ali added: “T10 is fast, so there is not much time. You have to go hard from ball one and that can help in improving your game.”

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