Opener still England's mission impossible

With one injudicious swipe outside off stump Moeen Ali showed exactly why many people did not want him to open in this series against Pakistan.

With England starring down the barrel of a heavy defeat on day four of this second Test and needing to bat out 144 overs to save the match, Moeen’s timing, in just the fifth over, was awful in every sense.

Before the tour began, England captain Alastair Cook had described the possibility of Moeen opening alongside him in the UAE as a ‘horses for courses’ selection.

And if we’re sticking with the equine theme, his dismissal here was akin to a runner at the Grand National bolting in the wrong direction at the sound of the starting pistol.

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Moeen has only batted four innings as a Test opener and did okay in his first, helping put on a century stand with Cook in Abu Dhabi.

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Cook and Moeen during the first Test // Getty Images

However, the manner of his latest dismissal, and the match situation at the time, could be enough for a fair judge to rule he just doesn’t have the discipline to be a Test-match opener.

The delivery from Imran Khan was tempting. But given England’s predicament, Moeen should have resisted the urge to take him on.

Instead he edged to Younis Khan at second slip and England had lost their first wicket.

That Cook’s men managed to see out the day just three wickets down was testament to another brilliant innings from Joe Root.

But while Root’s form is one shining light for England, the struggle to find a suitable opening foil for Cook has hung over the team like a dark cloud for more than three years.

Moeen is Cook’s seventh partner at the top of the order since the retirement of Andrew Strauss in September 2012.

Nobody has made a convincing claim to the role and the one man who did make a half-decent fist of it – Nick Compton – was dropped seemingly because his face didn’t fit.

Compton scored two centuries and his average opening stand with Cook was 57. No-one has yet come close to matching that but Compton was ditched after two bad Tests at home to New Zealand in the northern summer of 2013.

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Compton opened alongside Cook in 2013 // Getty Images

Root took over for the Ashes series that followed and despite a century against Australia at Lord’s, he was rightly moved back into the middle order, where he has since become England’s best batsman.

Michael Carberry, who showed admirable fight during the 2013-14 Ashes whitewash in Australia, was another whose personality counted against him.

So desperate were England to fill the void at the top of their order they went for an Aussie next – Sam Robson, whose dad ‘Jungle Jim’ is about as ocker as you can get and who has been a key figure in New South Wales Cricket for years.

When Robson junior crashed and burned, a technical weakness outside off-stump shown up at the highest level, England went back to the future and recalled Jonathan Trott, whose ill-advised comeback ended in retirement after three Tests in the Caribbean earlier this year.

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Adam Lyth was next up and anyone who even had a passing interest in this year’s Ashes series in the UK would be able to tell you the Yorkshireman wasn’t up to it.

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Cook looks on as Lyth is dismissed by Australia // Getty Images

So, with Lyth shelved for this tour, England had a decision to make as to who would be Cook’s latest partner. It came down to a straight choice – Moeen or Alex Hales.

The fans’ choice was Hales, whose encouraging start to life in international limited-overs cricket has been backed up by a solid first-class record at domestic level over the past two English summers.

On the day Lyth suffered his final failure against Australia at The Oval in August, Hales struck a brilliant 189 in 219 balls for Nottinghamshire in the County Championship.

It appeared a sign. But no. Moeen, a man who before this tour had never opened in first-class cricket, was preferred and, in all likelihood, Hales will now be chucked in at the deep end for a series against South Africa in December.

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Hales has played 20 ODIs for England // Getty Images

The 26-year-old’s poor form in the one-day series against Australia at the end of the English summer did not help his cause. But David Warner is a shining example that players who first made their name in limited-overs cricket can be a success at Test level.

Moving Moeen up from eight to opener was always going to be a tough ask. The ‘horses for courses’ selection on low, slow wickets here made some kind of sense.

But in South Africa, Moeen’s weakness against the short ball will is likely to be brutally exposed by Dale Steyn et al.

Paul Farbrace, England’s assistant coach, gave Moeen his backing at the close of play on day four in Dubai. But, tellingly, he refused to guarantee he would open for the final Test in Sharjah.

“That’s the thing with international cricket, every game you are being judged,” said Farbrace. “I’m not going to sit here and say he will definitely open in the third Test, that’s not my job.”

At the moment, finding the right man for the job to partner Cook appears nigh on impossible.