Moeen Ali admits he sometimes plays some “stinking shots” but wants to bat in the top order for England this summer and remind everyone that he is a “batsman who can bowl spin” rather than a frontline spinner.

“Ideally I would love to bat at five. I would love to have the responsibility with the batting,” he said at the ECB’s launch with Natwest of their campaign 'Cricket Has No Boundaries'.


“I batted at five in the winter, and did well, then got pushed up to number four. I know I played some stinking shots at times, but that's part of my batting.

“I want to be true to myself. When I get dropped… or when I finish, I'd rather look back and think 'You know what, I played the way I wanted to play – I didn't play like anybody else, I wasn't afraid to use my feet and try to smack it over mid-on which I thought at the time was the right thing to do'."

“I'm 29, hope I'm going into my peak years, and it's making me better – because I've been in situations not many openers or top three have been in, batting with the tail. With the ball as well, I feel like I'm getting better. I'm much more comfortable as a cricketer than I was three years ago.”

England squad for the champions trophy is currently in Spain for a training camp at the Desert Springs resort ahead of the ODI series against South Africa followed by Champions Trophy.