England sprung a surprise on the fourth morning at Headingley, with Moeen Ali walking out to bat at No.3 ahead of Harry Brook at the fall of Ben Duckett’s wicket.
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The move came as a shock to viewers and pundits, with England making clear that, even with the Ashes on the line, they wouldn’t ditch their policy of taking risks and choosing the unorthodox option if it made sense to them.
So what was the logic behind the decision? First, England already faced a dilemma over who to bat at No.3 ahead of the Test, with regular first-drop Ollie Pope ruled out by a dislocated shoulder. At first, it was assumed that Essex’s Dan Lawrence, the spare batter in the squad, would be picked in his place, but England opted to bolster their bowling instead, selecting two all-rounders in Moeen and Chris Woakes to bat – initially – at Nos.7 and 8.
That meant a promotion for Brook, from No.5 to No.3. Brook has experienced an up and down maiden Ashes series: he has looked comfortable at times, making 78 runs in the game at Edgbaston, with one of his dismissals freakish, and added a half-century at Lord’s. But Pat Cummins has increasingly had his number, bowling him and nicking him off in each of his last two innings. This way, he is afforded more protection.
Moeen at No.3 also allows England to return to a batting line-up more like the one they used in the first two Tests, and in positions where the players have had success before, with Joe Root to come in at No.4, Brook at No.5, Ben Stokes at No.6 and Jonny Bairstow at No.7.
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Speaking on Sky Sports commentary, Nasser Hussain also suggested that Moeen’s perceived weakness against the short ball could actually work in England’s favour in this instance, with a bouncer barrage softening up the still-new ball and making things easier for England’s other batters.
Then there’s Moeen’s experience at No.3. He regularly fulfilled the role for Worcestershire in county cricket, and has even opened batting in Test cricket before, on England’s 2015 tour of the UAE. As recently as 2018, he was England’s incumbent No.3 in Test cricket, making a crucial half-century against India at the Kia Oval before being moved down the order. He has also frequently batted in the top three in white-ball cricket, though he has floated around the order both internationally and in franchise cricket.
The experiment proved to be a short-lived one, with Moeen bowled by Mitchell Starc for five off 15.
