“Pakistan Pacers Are Good, But Not the Best”: England World Cup Winner’s Blunt Assessment

Former England cricket team all-rounder Moeen Ali believes that the current Pakistan fast bowlers are talented but not the best in the world. In a recent interaction, Moeen praised the trio of Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah but clarified that they are not at the top when it comes to the best in the world. Speaking on a podcast alongside Adil Rashid, Moeen noted that people with Pakistani backgrounds often claim the pace trio is the best in the world, but he disagrees. “There’s this perception, especially among people with Pakistani backgrounds, that Pakistan has the best seamers. I’m like, no. They’re good, but they’re not the best,” Moeen said.

“Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, and Haris Rauf are good. Don’t get me wrong. I am not calling them bad, but they are not the best in the business at the moment,” he added.

Earlier, Moeen Ali expressed his opinion that rule changes in the ODI format have made it the “worst format to play,” stating that the 50-over game has “completely died outside of the ICC Cricket World Cup and the Champions Trophy” due to batting-friendly rules like powerplays and the two-ball rule.

Moeen was speaking to Talksport Cricket, as quoted by Wisden. Notably, England has struggled in ODIs recently, having performed poorly in their ICC Cricket World Cup title defense in India in 2023, with just three wins in nine matches. While they managed to qualify for the Champions Trophy, they ended their campaign without a single win in three matches.

Speaking on Talksport Cricket, Moeen said, “The format has almost completely died out, apart from World Cups and the Champions Trophy. It is the worst format to play, and I think there are many reasons for that.”

Moeen criticized the rule allowing one extra fielder inside the circle (a total of four fielders outside the 30-yard circle, reduced from five earlier, introduced in 2012), calling it “horrendous” as it makes it difficult to build pressure on batters.

“I think the rules are terrible. To have that extra fielder in after the first powerplay, I think it is a horrendous rule for taking wickets or building any sort of pressure. Guys are averaging 60, 70 in ODI cricket now because of that. When you’re bowling at somebody and you put a little bit of pressure, they just reverse-sweep, and it’s not even a single, it’s a four. The batters always have that option to score,” said Moeen.

(With ANI inputs)