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September 9, 2024
“Brendon just brings this energy, it helps being somebody who’s been there and done it, in the way he played.”
Moeen Ali believes that Brendon McCullum is “100 percent” the right person to revive England’s struggling white-ball cricket. He also thinks McCullum will help captain Jos Buttler perform at his best. Moeen, who is retiring from international cricket at 37, played 138 ODIs and 92 T20Is for England, contributing to World Cup wins in 2019 and 2022. As Buttler’s vice-captain, Moeen played a significant role in the team’s recent successes and in the white-ball transformation under Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss.
Now, with England needing to rebuild after disappointing title defenses in 2023 and 2024, Moeen supports McCullum and Buttler in their new roles. McCullum, a former New Zealand captain and renowned white-ball batsman, is replacing Matthew Mott, who was dismissed after England’s T20 World Cup semi-final loss in July. Moeen believes McCullum’s reputation and leadership will bring a fresh and powerful influence to the team.
“Brendon just brings this energy,” Moeen said. “It helps being somebody who’s been there and done it, in the way he played.
“Sometimes, when the coach says ‘go and do this’, and they never did it themselves, it’s quite difficult to take on. But Brendon brings that energy, and I think it’d be great for Jos more than anything, because he’s got so much on his plate with batting, bowling, keeping, captaining and all that.”
“Brendon will take the pressure off Jos, and he can just play as captain on the field. Brendon will be more in control, I think.”
After his appointment, Brendon McCullum observed that Jos Buttler had seemed somewhat “miserable” recently. Buttler had some tense moments with the media during the World Cup and has been sidelined with a calf injury since England’s semi-final loss to India.
During Buttler’s captaincy, Moeen Ali played a key role on the field, frequently making tactical changes and communicating with bowlers while Buttler focused on keeping wickets. Moeen captained England in 13 matches, including a full series in Pakistan in October 2022, which helped prepare the team for their T20 World Cup win.
With a new generation of white-ball players emerging, Moeen believes Buttler will have strong support during England’s rebuilding phase. Phil Salt will lead the T20I series against Australia next week, and Harry Brook is on standby to captain the ODI squad if Buttler’s injury keeps him out.
“When Morgs initially took over, he didn’t really have a right-hand man, but a good, tough captain produces leaders, and I think over time you’ll get that,” Moeen said. “At the moment, obviously you’ve got Sam Curran and these guys who can lead, but sometimes as a vice-captain you can almost talk too much, and give too much advice.”
“I felt that sometimes, maybe, I did that, but I think Jos will make everyone feel like they can come and speak to him. He’s very approachable, but I think he will do his own thing. There’s a lot of leaders out there who potentially can be great leaders in the future.”
Rishabh Pant is back in the Indian Test squad for the first time since his car accident in December 2022. However, Mohammed Shami is still recovering from ankle surgery and will not be returning for the match against Bangladesh.
Left-arm seamer Yash Dayal has been called up for his first Test, with an eye on the upcoming five-Test series in Australia later this year. The 16-member squad also includes KL Rahul, who missed the England series after just one Test. Akash Deep, who made his debut during that series, has been retained after impressing with nine wickets in the Duleep Trophy game in Bengaluru.
KL Rahul last played Test cricket in January against England before missing the rest of the series due to a quadriceps injury. In the recent Duleep Trophy game, he scored 37 and 57 for India A. Rishabh Pant, playing for India B, made scores of 7 and 61 and took seven catches. Yash Dayal also stood out by taking three wickets in the fourth innings to secure a win for India B. Dayal has played 24 first-class matches, taking 76 wickets at an average of 28.89.
Dhruv Jurel, who scored 190 runs in three Tests against England, is the second wicket-keeper in the squad. The team has dropped Rajat Patidar, KS Bharat, Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar, and Mukesh Kumar from the previous series. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are expected to lead the pace attack, while R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav will handle spin.
The first Test against Bangladesh starts in Chennai on September 19, followed by the second Test in Kanpur on September 27. The series will conclude with three T20Is.
Here is the squad:
Katarzyna Nowak is a seasoned writer with over five years of experience in editorial content, news reporting, and cricket sportsbook app reviews. As an author for IPLWin365 (IPL365 News), she combines her deep understanding of the sports betting industry with a passion for cricket, delivering insightful and accurate content that keeps readers informed and engaged.
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