Two pillars of the modern-day England test team-Moeen Ali and Alastair Cook had a public fallout when these two came together to commentate on Ashes 2021. Even as things got bad on the field for England, who lost the series 4-0, the mood in the studio wasn’t getting any better. And then Moeen Ali did something which infuriated his ex-skipper. It all began when Ali began by comparing Joe Root with Cook, saying that ‘Rootey’ had more emotional sympathy towards his players.
This didn’t go down well with Cook.
“Are you just criticising my captaincy?” Cook asked and Moeen admitted in affirmative, adding “a little bit.”
Cook then fired back, asking him how many times did Root drop Ali from the playing eleven, to which Ali replied “that’s true but you also batted me from 1 to 9 in my first year of international cricket.”
However, the two returned to the commentary box once again after a gap of four months, this time during the second Test match between England and New Zealand. And Cook being the aggressor last time, was quick to set the record straight.
“I was coming back from a holiday, walking straight back to the studio at midnight. I met the all-smiling Mo (Moeen), as he always is, very happy. Anyway, half an hour into the shift, he basically told everyone who is watching and listening, ‘I wasn’t a very good captain and I wouldn’t be a very good coach’. That’s kind of how it went. So I actually feel as if I have nothing to defend here,” Cook said on BBC’s Test Match Special.
Sir Alastair Cook 🗣️ “He told everyone I wasn’t a very good captain!”
Moeen Ali 🗣️ “I was saying that Rooty has a lot more empathy for his players than you do!”
The duo discuss *that* viral video…
📻 Listen to @bbctms on @BBCSounds#BBCCricket #ENGvNZ pic.twitter.com/SqdwmAKWsr
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) June 11, 2022
Later, Ali also clarified that he didn’t compare Root with Cook.
“It was a little bit out of context. I was saying basically that Rooty had a lot more empathy for players than you did! And I never mentioned once that you’re not a good captain or if you are or aren’t better than Rooty. And then, you took it personally to heart and it went viral,” said Moeen.
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