Moeen Ali opts to leave England bubble and fly home for short break, will miss final two Tests against India in Ahmedabad; Ali's fellow off-spinner Dom Bess named in 17-man squad for third Test as Jofra Archer and James Anderson return; Jonny Bairstow and Mark Wood back after rest
Tuesday 16 February 2021 11:18, UK
England all-rounder Moeen Ali has chosen to fly home and will miss the final two Tests against India in Ahmedabad.
Moeen took eight wickets in the match and scored a quick-fire second-innings 43 from 18 balls in England's 317-run loss to India in the second Test in Chennai - his first Test since the Ashes opener in 2019.
However, the 33-year-old - who suffered with a bout of coronavirus in Sri Lanka earlier this year - has opted to leave the bio-secure bubble and will now head home to spend time with his family.
England 17-man squad for third Test: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
England captain Joe Root said: "Moeen has chosen to go home. He obviously feels he wants to be with his family and we have to respect that.
It is challenging but so is everything. With Covid, bubble life, and the amount of cricket, trying to factor that all in together is tough but it is where we are at. We just have to get the best out of the players that are here.
"It's been a tough tour for him - dealing with Covid, being in his room for such a long period of time.
"I think it's got to a point where he wants to get out of the bubble - and that's fair enough. I'm sure it wasn't an easy decision.
"If players feel they need to get out of the bubble then that is an option and I think it's really important that we stand by that."
Asked if Moeen may have played his final Test, Root said: "Why would it be his last Test match? I thought he got better as the game went on and showed everyone that he has the skills to perform at this level.
"He is not taking a further part out here but I don't see why that closes the door on him entirely."
Moeen's fellow off-spinner Dom Bess - dropped for the second Test - returns to a 17-man squad for the day-night third Test in Ahmedabad, which gets under way on Wednesday, February 24.
Seamers Jofra Archer, who missed the second Test with an elbow injury, and James Anderson, rested after starring in England's 227-run win in the first Test, are also back.
Batsman Zak Crawley, who missed the first two Tests with a broken wrist, is in England's party, as are batsman Jonny Bairstow and paceman Mark Wood, who were rested for the first two games of the series.
Crawley and Bairstow are options to bolster a batting line-up rolled for 134 and 164 on a spin-friendly surface in Chennai.
On Crawley, Root added: "Zak is improving all the time. He has been batting quite a lot this week and seems to be getting better and better. That's great signs for him and us moving forward."
