As 2017 is into its final quarter, the cricketing globe has already witnessed the quality matches followed by spectacular performances from the players in the summer season of England cricket in particular; the former England skipper Nasser Hussain has picked his cricketer of the summer, in the form of off-spinning all-rounder Moeen Ali.
Pertinently, the Sky Sports digital has published the comments of the veterans of the game which is spread over five months in English cricket. The column has also listed the cricketer-turned-commentator Hussain in the section for memorable moments.
“I have gone for Moeen Ali – I could have gone for about 15 different Moeen moments because I think he has been the man of the summer for England,” Hussain told Sky Sports.
Hussain discussed his favourite moments of the season which further saw newly-appointed skipper Joe Root winning his first two-Test series against the Windies and Proteas respectively during the summer period.
The Chennai-born 49-year-old Hussain stated Ali’s hat-trick at The Oval in London was the best moment for him during the ongoing year, as the iconic ground was hosting 100th Test as a venue.
Ali picked the wickets of Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada and then Morne Morkel to claim his first-ever hat-trick while donning the white jersey.
“His hat-trick at The Oval, against South Africa, which was secured on review when he had Morne Morkel lbw is my moment,” Hussain remarked.
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The third Test match which was scheduled for July 27 and July 31 respectively, Ali helped England to clinch the game by 239 runs.
Ali, who brings a lot to the plate according to Hussain, who further believes the former has been impressive following hard-fought performances in the gentleman’s game while relying on the basics.
“I can’t believe it wasn’t given out initially. We panned to a lad in the crowd and he had his fingers crossed, so I thought that was a great moment,” Hussain reminisced, as he was the part of commentary booth while witnessing the extraordinary scenes.
Interestingly, following the feat at the Oval, Ali became first England spinner to claim a hat-trick since 1938 which further made it a memorable moment of the for England star.
It’s pertinent to mention; the promising 30-year-old Birmingham-born all-rounder has played an essential role for England against the Windies in the recently concluded five-match Royal London series.
Owing to the remarkable period for Ali, he has shown vast improvement both with the bat and a ball while throwing himself into the game by relying solely on his strength.
The left-handed batsman Ali, who would be eyeing to continue his stupendous run in the upcoming Magellan Ashes series, has to shoulder more responsibility after Ben Stokes has been banned until further notice by England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after Bristol street-brawl.