Ex-England star Moeen Ali slams ‘clown’ David Warner over Joe Root comments

Moeen Ali has branded David Warner a ‘clown’ after the Australian legend said Joe Root would need to ‘take the surfboard off his front leg’ if England are to win the Ashes.

Despite Root tightening his grip on top spot in the men’s Test batting rankings this summer, Warner couldn’t resist taking a shot at his old rival as England’s enthralling five-match series with India drew to a close.

Ben Stokes and Co now have a three-month break from the Test arena before heading Down Under in late November, where they will begin their quest to win back the urn for the first time in a decade.

A masterful 150 saw Root surpass Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis and Ricky Ponting to go second on the all-time Test run-scorer list as England and India were forced to settle for a draw in the fourth Test at Old Trafford.

The 34-year-old followed up his ton in Manchester with another memorable hundred at the Oval, though the century was ultimately in vain as the tourists snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to level the series.

While Sachin Tendulkar is now the only batsman above Root in the annals of history, Warner suggested there was still a big weakness in the Yorkshireman’s game which Australia’s bowlers will look to expose.

‘The big anchor there is Root, who is yet to score a hundred in Australia,’ the outspoken former Australian opener told the BBC.

‘[Josh] Hazlewood tends to have his number quite a lot. He will have to take the surfboard off his front leg.’

Needless to say, Warner’s latest attempts at sledging – 18 months after his retirement from Test cricket – have caused quite a stir amongst both England and Australia fans ahead of this winter’s eagerly anticipated Ashes series.

Former England pace bowler Stuart Broad, who famously tormented Warner across their many Ashes battles, tweeted: ‘I’ve never heard England’s best ever batters front pad called a surfboard [two crying laughing emojis].

‘Just for clarity. Hazlewood has got Rooty LBW in Test Cricket 3 times. Three.’

Former England all-rounder Ali, meanwhile, suggested Warner was being foolish for even trying to get into the head of one of the greats of the game.

‘He’s just being Warner. He’s a bit of a clown to be honest with you,’ Ali said on the Beard Before Wicket podcast.

‘He’s trying to, obviously, get into Rooty’s head, which he won’t. He’s not up for the whole banter thing.

‘It’s just Warner, isn’t it?’

According to Ali, Root now has so much experience under his belt that Warner’s comments will roll off him like water off a duck’s back.

‘There are certain players that people would have identified to get under their skin in different ways,’ Ali added.

‘I remember in the 2016 T20 World Cup final against the West Indies, we were like, “Right, when [Marlon] Samuels is batting, don’t say anything because he actually plays better sometimes when you get into him… we won’t say anything, leave him alone”.

‘But I remember from the first ball, Jason Roy and Ben [Stokesy] were just flying into him and I was thinking, “Oh my god”.

‘There are different ways to do it. Some guys, you just don’t say anything to.

‘Jonny [Bairstow] was another one. He loved it, he was looking for it. Virat [Kohli] the same, looking for a fight, looking for something.

‘But Rooty… the guy has scored so many runs now, he’s been through the whole thing and it won’t effect him.’

Ali continued: ‘India tried it [with Root] and it just didn’t work, clearly didn’t work, because he scored loads of runs.

‘But yeah, there’s some players you can do that to and others that you can’t.’

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

MORE: Michael Vaughan says England star ‘needs to learn’ after dramatic India defeat

MORE: Ben Stokes ruled out as England make four changes for final India Test

MORE: Groundsman Lee Fortis speaks out after spat with India head coach Gautam Gambhir