England: By asserting that England are a better team with James Anderson in the starting XI, Moeen Ali has lent his support to the seasoned seamer. The Ashes have not gone well for Anderson, who was even left off the starting lineup for the third Test that England won to maintain its series lead.
However, the 40-year-old is now likely to replace Ollie Robinson in the starting XI for the vital fourth Test at Old Trafford.
"There's no doubt England are a better team with James Anderson in there," Moeen said. "In the two games he played I actually thought he bowled really well in both of them. I think he's been a bit unfortunate with catches and things probably not going his way.
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"Being the best bowler England have ever had and being a legend of a player and a great guy as well, it's great to see him have the opportunity to play, it could be his last one, and hopefully he bowls well and gets us the win."
Because Ollie Pope won't be playing in Manchester, Moeen will continue to bat at No. 3, which will present a significant obstacle. Harry Brook was inserted by England at No. 3 in the first innings at Headingley, but the youngster later moved back to No. 5 and produced the game-winning strike, while Moeen was moved up the order.
"It's obviously going to be a challenge batting No 3 against Australia with the best bowling attack in the world," Moeen said. "I'm looking forward to it. I think Brook is a great player and will be a great player. I just personally feel like five is great for him and the impact he can have at five is much more than what he can probably do at three, at the moment.”
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"I'm not saying he won't be a good No.3 I just feel right now for the team it's probably best that I go three. I do enjoy batting three, the challenge of batting three. I think for the team right now it's the best thing. I'm looking forward to playing against these guys and getting challenged. I know it's not easy because they are obviously very good."
The 36-year-old also acknowledged that, despite being down 2-1 in the series to date against the top-ranked team and the current World Test champions, England have battled bravely.
"I think I think we've challenged the number one team in the world and we've gone toe to toe with them," he said. "At crucial times they've managed to win that battle but I don't think we're far off. All the games have been fantastic but the belief in the changing room is that we can win this series, 3-2 and there's no doubt we have that."
After recently making a comeback for the Ashes due to Jack Leach's injury, Moeen remained cautious when asked about his own future in Test cricket. "For me, it's going through these two games if I play these two games," he pointed out. "I just want to get through that and see. It's not easy. I find Test cricket very hard and it is the hardest and best format out there for sure.”
"I have really enjoyed my time since I've come back and it's been a brilliant environment. I wish it was this four-five years ago, I'm not thinking too far ahead. I'm sure Baz (Brendon McCullum) and Stokesy (Ben Stokes) will speak to me after the summer but for me at the moment it's just this series."
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