Moeen Ali long-time batting partner, Daryl Mitchell, says it will be a proud day for the all-rounder and Worcestershire when he reaches the 100 cap mark for England in ODI internationals.
Mitchell first batted alongside Moeen in the County’s Second Eleven in 2006 and the pair became first team regulars before the latter earned his England breakthrough in 2014.
He made his first appearance for his country in an ODI in the West Indies and now is set to face the same opposition when he clocks up the century at the Rose Bowl next Friday (June 14).
Mitchell said: “It will be a proud day for Mo and the club when he gets to 100 caps. He has been fantastic for England. His performances show that and he has been a regular in all forms for a number of years now.
“He is a great ambassador for us and credit to the club and himself.
“Mo is a quality cricketer, we all know that, and having two strings to his bow helps. When he is not scoring runs, he is taking wickets and vice versa.
“That all-rounder capability helps and one skill takes the pressure off the other and he has generally performed in one or the other – if not both.”
It was after Moeen’s move from Warwickshire nearly a decade and a half ago that he and Mitchell first joined forces out in the middle.
PCA chairman Mitchell added: “Myself and Mo go way back. We actually played quite a lot in the second team together during 2006 and a little bit of 2007.
“We were in the one-day team of 2007 that won the Pro40 League and we both grew into our roles in the first team at similar times and played a hell of a lot of cricket together before he got into the international scene.
“He is a joy to play with and bat with and we have certainly put some big partnerships together, in red ball and white ball cricket. A top, top man and a top, top cricketer.
”We almost don’t have to call when running between the wickets we know each other’s games inside out.”
Mitchell says Moeen’s contribution as Worcestershire’s captain when achieving Vitality Blast glory last summer should not be under-estimated.
He said: “Mo at finals day was brilliant. There were 25,000 people there and he was the coolest, calmest person on the ground whether it be players, support staff or even fans in the crowd.
“He has the same influence on me when we bat together. He is always relaxed
“Mo came back and played quite a bit for us last year and was brilliant in the red ball game and his leadership and captaincy in T20 last year was phenomenal.”
