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Former
England spinner Graeme Swann would like to see all-rounder Moeen Ali
given more help with his bowling, as he has not reached his potential as
an England spinner.
London - England made a shock call to spinner Gareth Batty, who last played a Test 11 years ago, for the Bangladesh tour, and while Swann knows Moeen prefers batting, he has urged the coaches to do more with his bowling so that he can be the front line spinner.
Swann said in the Telegraph: "Moeen is happier with a bat in his hand. That is natural because he is a batsman and as a bowler I just think he needs an arm around him all the time.
"He needs his tyres pumped up, and people telling him how good a bowler he is. He is a bloody good Test bowler when he believes he is.
"There were times this summer when I watched the England body language around Moeen and it was poor - at Edgbaston especially. He started the final day bowling and he had nobody near him putting their arm around him.
"He was not bowling well and was getting tonked a bit and the support was non-existent. Not purposefully: they are just blase and don’t realise what the spinner is going through at that point.
"Maybe it is because I played for so many years and did not like someone coming up to me. I saw it as a sign of weakness from myself. I just wanted to be angry with myself and fight my way through it.
"That is quite rare I think. I think the England team need to find a better way of helping their spinners through those situations because they will come in India where the likes of Kohli will go after them.
"Moeen’s bowling has plateaued now. His first year was his best for England. He was new, fresh and thought he was being lucky.
"The problem for Moeen is that at the end of that year everyone in authority said it would be harder next year now people have seen you.
"The first thing he said to me when I saw him in the West Indies that winter was: ‘I know it will be harder next year’."
