Moeen Ali backed for England winter Test tours recall by Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler has backed Moeen Ali to rediscover the bowling form that helped England win 3-0 in Sri Lanka two years ago – and believes he could team up once more with fellow Test cast-off Adil Rashid.

Ali took 18 wickets at 24 in that series, forming a potent three-pronged spin attack with Rashid, who managed 12 at 28, and Somerset slow left-armer Jack Leach, who picked up 18 at 21.

All three have since fallen by the wayside at Test level, with Dom Bess stepping into the breach this summer. But with England set to fulfil their postponed two-match series in Sri Lanka early next year – and with five Tests against India to follow – Buttler believes the trio can be reunited as Joe Root’s team seeks a slow-bowling attack capable of prospering in Asia.

Moeen Ali has been backed for a England Test recall this winter by team-mate Jos Buttler

Ali has not played Test cricket since the first Ashes Test last season, and recently admitted he had been ‘coasting’ during his white-ball appearances for England. Rashid, meanwhile, is weighing up making himself available for Tests again, having not played any red-ball cricket for England or Yorkshire since January 2019.

But Buttler, England’s white-ball vice-captain, said: ‘Moeen is someone we all hope can come back to being the bowler we know. He’s an excellent bowler when you give him some responsibility, and a talented performer across all formats for England.

‘If you look back to the previous tour of Sri Lanka, with Moeen, Leachy and Adil Rashid – we played three spinners and had a lot of success doing that. Hopefully that could be another way to go again. And if someone like Adil is open to Test cricket as well, we know what a talented bowler he is.’

Buttler, who is in the UAE playing for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, has been enjoying the all-round exploits of team-mate Jofra Archer, who has hit seven of the 15 balls he has faced so far in the tournament for six – and conceded just 7.5 an over, his team’s best economy-rate.

His six-hitting is in contrast to his performances for England, where he has failed to clear the ropes once in nine white-ball matches.

‘A few guys have been saying: “Where’s that been?” said Buttler. ‘Rajasthan have been joking about why have we had him down at No 10 or 11? We all know how capable Jofra is with the bat. He’s an incredibly talented guy. When you add that to bowling 90-plus mph, that’s a pretty good cricketer.’

Watch Rajasthan Royals take on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the next Dream11 IPL match on Sky Sports – Saturday October 3 at 11am.