England’s bowlers failed to defend a 166-run total as the 2016 finalists were knocked out of the tournament. Morgan used just five bowlers in the encounter and didn’t introduce Moeen Ali into the attack.
While reflecting on England’s bowling performance in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra was surprised that the off-spinner was not given a bowl. He elaborated:
The cricketer-turned-commentator highlighted that Moeen Ali could have been effective against the Kiwi southpaws. Chopra explained:
Moeen Ali was used with the new ball in some of England’s league stage matches. However, with the pitch assisting the seamers, Morgan opted to bowl Chris Woakes and Chris Jordan for the first five overs of the New Zealand innings.
“I thought it was a faux pas” - Aakash Chopra on Moeen Ali not bowling
Aakash Chopra added that Eoin Morgan’s decision not to use Moeen Ali minimized the resources at his disposal. He reasoned:
The 44-year-old concluded by stating that Moeen Ali might have just continued with the good work he had done earlier with the bat. Chopra observed:
Ali top-scored for England with an unbeaten 51 after they were asked to bat first. His knock helped the Morgan-led side reach a competitive score, which their bowlers failed to defend.
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