Moeen Ali named in England's squad for Lord's Test

Moeen Ali could be drafted straight into the playing XI to bring some balance into the side after England went in without a frontline spinner in the first Test against India at Nottingham.

Apart from wily off-spin, Ali is also expected to add a little more impetus with the bat lower down the order alongside fellow southpaw Sam Curran.

The spin-bowling all-rounder hasn't featured in a home Test match since the first game of Ashes 2019, which also was the ICC World Test Championship 2019-21 opener. After the completion of the series, Ali went on an indefinite break from Test cricket.

Since then, he has only featured in one Test which came against India in Chennai, where he was the highest run-scorer (49) and the highest wicket-taker (8) for England in their 317-run loss.

The last time India toured England, Ali was recalled into the Test squad mid-series and justified his inclusion with 119 runs and 12 wickets in two Tests, including a Player of the Match-winning performance at Southampton.

Moeen Ali has often reserved his best cricket in the longest form of the game against India, having scored more runs (673) and more wickets (49) against India than any other team.

The first Test between England and India had to settle for a draw after the final day at Trent Bridge was washed out due to rain. The action now heads to Lord's for the second Test, starting Thursday, 12 August.

England's squad for the second Test against India: Joe Root (Captain), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Dom Sibley, Mark Wood.