England are hoping to prove that “old is gold” after banking on a vintage attack for their must-win Ashes Test at Emirates Old Trafford.
With record wicket-taker James Anderson returning to the XI less than two weeks before his 41st birthday, the home side are set to roll out the oldest pace attack in Ashes cricket since the Australian class of 1928.
That was the last time either side fielded four seamers aged 33 or above, a bar England will clear with ease when local favourite Anderson joins 37-year-old Stuart Broad, 34-year-old Chris Woakes and Mark Wood, the baby of the group at 33.
Their last remaining twentysomething, Ollie Robinson, made way for Anderson after struggling with back spasms during last week’s win at Headingley, and England’s collection of veterans even extends to 36-year-old spinner Moeen Ali.
“I was always told that old was gold,” said the all-rounder, who will continue to bat at number three in Manchester.
“Somebody said it was the oldest attack since 1920-something. As somebody who’s quite old, I think it’s a great thing to be part of.
“But it’s not just old, it’s Jimmy, it’s Broady, Woakesy, Woody – they’re really good bowlers, good guys and hopefully they can get some wickets.
“You always know what you’re going to get, especially from those four seamers. Myself…you never know what you’re going to get, but with those guys you definitely know how good they are.”
Just a few short weeks ago Moeen was happily enjoying his red-ball retirement, only deciding to return to the fray after Jack Leach’s injury left England without an experienced spinner.
Now, as well as performing an important job with the ball, he finds himself pulling double duty in the pivotal number three position that was vacated when Ollie Pope dislocated his shoulder at Lord’s.
Harry Brook briefly inherited the mantle in the third Test but moved back down to his preferred position at five for the fourth innings and produced a knock of 75.
Moeen had initially volunteered to go up the order on a one-off basis but has been persuaded to remain in place to allow Brook to settle in the middle order.
That is entirely in keeping with an international career that has been built around selflessness and flexibility, occupying every spot from one to nine over the course of 66 Test caps as well as performing a variety of roles in the white-ball set-up.
“I just thought it was best for the team and the other guys more than myself,” he admitted.
“That’s the most important thing. I think Brooky is a great player and will be a great player, I just personally feel five is great for him. The impact he can have there is much more than he probably can at three at the moment. I just feel right now, for the team, it’s probably best I go three. I feel fine about it.”
Moeen has five Test centuries to his name but the last of those came in December 2016 and, although he is deliberately cautious about his latest positional change, he is also open to the idea of concluding his career with a dream finish.
“You’ve got to be a bit realistic. If it happens it would be amazing and I would absolutely love that, but I don’t ever look too far ahead,” he said.
“We’ll see, if I’m playing well and I get in I have made Test hundreds before and it’s not like I can’t do it. It’s just when you’ve been out of Test cricket a while…even before the series, I wasn’t actually that worried about my bowling. It was more the batting.
“But things happen for a reason. I genuinely believe that and I’ve always believed it. That’s why when the call came (to come out of retirement) I thought it’s an opportunity I can’t turn down.
“I’m a big one on faith and destiny and all that. It would be amazing to win an Ashes and finish Test cricket properly.”
Moeen’s comeback has already yielded one significant milestone – reaching 200 Test wickets at Headingley – and he now stands just 23 away from 3,000 runs.
Only 15 players have ever achieved both landmarks, including three Englishmen in Sir Ian Botham, Andrew Flintoff and Broad.
Moeen joked: “I think that means more to my dad!
“It would mean a lot to me as well, but dad is the one who is buzzing for it. Hopefully I can get there. I think it would make my family proud.”
Asalanka leads Sri Lanka to ODI series win over West Indies
Sri Lanka wrapped up the ODI series against the West Indies with a five-wicket victory in Pallekele.
The hosts successfully chased down their opponents' total of 189, giving them an unassailable 2-0 in the three-match series.
Sri Lanka controlled the early powerplay - Asitha Fernando (3-35) and Maheesh Theekshana (3-25) took two wickets apiece to leave the tourists at 31-4 in the ninth over.
Wanindu Hasaranga (4-40) then claimed three of his four wickets as Roston Chase, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh and Alzarri Joseph were all dismissed in the space of 14 balls.
However, Sherfane Rutherford (80 off 82 balls) and Gudakesh Motie (50 not out) steadied the ship to take the Windies from 58-8 to 189.
Although Joseph claimed Avishka Fernando (9) in the fourth over, Nishan Madushka and Sadeera Samarawickrama both chipped in with contributions of 38 to get the hosts to 112-4.
Skipper Charith Asalanka (62 not out) led the charge thereon, while Kamindu Mendis (11) comfortably got them over the line with 34 balls remaining.
Data Debrief: Rutherford-Motie historic stand proves academic for tourists
West Indies were looking to level the series, but their hopes were not aided by Sri Lanka's impressive bowling.
Rutherford and Motie did their best. Their partnership brought 119 runs, which is their nation's highest ninth-wicket stand in ODI history, breaking the previous record of 85 between Yannic Cariah and Alzarri Joseph.
However, it ultimately proved in vain as the hosts secured the series with a game to spare.
'I was a tired, grumpy old man' - Stokes apologised to England team-mates after Pakistan defeat
Ben Stokes says he apologised to his England team-mates after his frustrations were evident during the second-Test defeat by Pakistan.
The hosts levelled the three-Test series on Thursday after wrapping up a 152-run win in Multan.
However, it could have been a different story but for fielding errors at crucial stages for the visitors, Jamie Smith and Joe Root notably dropping catches to dismiss Salman Agha, whose subsequent knock of 63 helped Pakistan seal victory with a day to spare.
Stokes, who returned to action following a hamstring injury, could not hide his frustration during a difficult day for England, but insisted he would not let his emotions get the better of him again.
"No one means to drop catches, but it just proves how important catches are in these subcontinent conditions, they don't come along that often," he told Sky Sports.
"I actually apologised to the group last night. It's the first time in my captaincy that I've let my emotions and how I was feeling with the way the game was unfolding show in my body language.
"I owned up to that and was very annoyed at myself for letting that out. It's something that I don't want to do or be seen to be doing, so I apologised to the group about that.
"Poor old me, I was a tired, grumpy old man last night! You won't see that happen again."
However, England coach Brendon McCullum defended the actions of his skipper.
"We all know how passionate Ben is, how much it means for him to play for England," he said.
"We've seen that through his bloody-mindedness to get back from injury, which was significant, and to do so in a nine-week timeframe and to have his first TM [Test match] in extreme conditions, 40 degrees, and be able to give what he gave to the side.
"I think, maybe, that's where some of that frustration led to - certainly, it wasn't directed at any of the players. It was more about trying to assess the rhythm of the game, and to impact on it."
Sri Lanka breeze to series win over West Indies
Sri Lanka cruised to a nine-wicket victory over West Indies to seal a T20I series triumph.
With the series delicately poised at 1-1 heading into the final match on Thursday, Sri Lanka started with intent in Dambulla.
Maheesh Theekshana (2-19) and Wanindu Hasaranga (2-24) led the charge as Sri Lanka skittled through the Windies' top order.
Rovman Powell's stubborn 37 and a contribution of 32 from Gudakesh Motie steered West Indies to a reasonable total of 162-8, but it was one well within reach of Sri Lanka.
Pathum Nissanka clipped seven fours and one six in a 22-ball 37 to get Sri Lanka's chase rolling at pace, before he was bowled by Gudakesh Mottie (1-31).
Yet the damage was mostly done, with Kusal Mendis powering his way to an unbeaten 68 and Kusal Perera plundering 55 from 36 balls to get the job done with the minimum of fuss.
Data Debrief: Perera closing in on Sri Lanka record
Perera is now just nine runs away from surpassing Tillakaratne Dilshan (1,889) as the leading scorer in Sri Lanka's T20I history.
His efforts, combined with those of Nissanka and Mendis, saw Sri Lanka win for a fourth time in their last six T20Is at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium, although this is the first time they have won at the venue in that run when batting second.
The Windies' miserable record in Asia has continued, meanwhile. They have won only one of their last 11 T20Is in Asia (L10), with that victory coming in the first match of this series. They have now lost 33 T20Is on the continent in total, with only Ireland (35) having lost more.
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