Watch: 'I never mentioned it once. You took it personally' - Moeen, Cook engage in on-air debate over heated argument
Alastair Cook and Moeen Ali spoke about their heated argument in January, with Cook claiming that Moeen said ‘he wasn’t a very good captain'.
England all-rounder Moeen Ali and former captain Alastair Cook had a heated row earlier this year, when Moeen made a comment on Cook's captaincy during his time as England cricketer. During a show for the Ashes series, Moeen had said that Joe Root had a more emotional attachment with the players, to which Alastair Cook responded by saying, "Are you just criticising my captaincy?" Moeen admitted that he did "a little bit," adding that he performed better with the ball under Root.
Cook, then, defended himself by asking Moeen on the number of times Root had dropped him and the all-rounder, reverting to his original point, had said, "That’s true but you also batted me from 1 to 9 in my first year of international cricket."
Over four months later, Cook and Moeen came together again during a commentary stint for the second Test between England and New Zealand. The duo was asked to clear up the misunderstanding during their Ashes stint, and it was Cook who began the conversation.
“I was coming back from a holiday, walking straight back to the studio at midnight. I met the all-smiling Mo (Moeen), as he always is, very happy. Anyway, half an hour into the shift, he basically told everyone who is watching and listening, 'I wasn't a very good captain and I wouldn't be a very good coach'. That's kind of how it went. So I actually feel as if I have nothing to defend here,” Cook said on BBC's Test Match Special.
Moeen, clarifying his comment, insisted that he only said that Root had “a lot more empathy” for players, and that he didn't compare Cook with the former England Test skipper.
“It was a little bit out of context. I was saying basically that Rooty had a lot more empathy for players than you did! And I never mentioned once that you're not a good captain or if you are or aren't better than Rooty. And then, you took it personally to heart and it went viral,” said Moeen.
