Moeen Ali Hopes for Things to Get Easier for British Muslims in Cricket

English all-rounder, Moeen Ali, recently announced his retirement from Test cricket, bringing an end to a Test career spanning over 64 matches. Moeen revealed that the decision to retire from the longest format of the game was made to give his body some much-needed rest and prolong his limited-overs career.

Speaking about his Test career, the 34-year old delved into the details of the incident involving ‘Save Palestine’ wristbands he wore. Moeen wore the wristbands during England’s third Test match against India in Southampton in 2014.

Moeen was banned from wearing the wristbands by the International Cricket Council (ICC) despite getting prior clearance from England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and match referee David Boon on the grounds of making a humanitarian statement. ICC released a statement that read that no equipment or clothing can display any message relating to political, religious, or racial activities.

The stylish all-rounder revealed that he was aware that wearing the wristbands would get a lot of attention in the cricketing world and the media, and it would break out to be bigger news than he had originally intended.

“From the moment I wore the Palestinian wristbands, I knew it would break out to be bigger news than intended. But that’s a proud moment for me. I didn’t mean it to happen, but I did wear them to increase awareness,” Moeen stated.

Moeen further stated that he has fulfilled his dream of playing Test cricket for England despite facing a lot of obstacles throughout his career and hoped that the upcoming British Muslim players will not face the same hardships as he has.

He said, “I hope things will be easier for the next British Muslim. I think they will be, too. It always takes somebody to inspire you or say that if he can do it, so can I. I certainly felt that way when I saw Hashim Amla when I first saw him on television.”