Moeen Ali Barred From The Hundred 2026 After Supporting Pakistan Participation

Moeen Ali loses The Hundred auction spot [Source: X]

England veteran Moeen Ali, who has captained Birmingham Phoenix for four seasons, has been turned down for being added to The Hundred longlist by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). The rejection came after the ECB reasoned that no team had nominated him as a player of interest ahead of the auction set to take place next week.

The former skipper of Phoenix opted out last season to prioritise playing the Caribbean Premier League for the Guyana Amazon Warriors, as he retired from English domestic cricket to secure no-objection certificates.

However, it seems like Moeen Ali has met his own fate even after reversing his decision to retire from English domestic cricket. But was that an indirect response from the ECB in the wake of the controversy surrounding the neglect of Pakistan players in the tournament?

Moeen Ali Protests Against Pakistan Player Shadow Ban in The Hundred

This edition of The Hundred has widely reported that multiple franchises are not interested in bringing in Pakistani cricketers, specifically those franchises that have India co-owners, making their stance strict against signing any player from Pakistan.

For the unaware, the non-signing of Pakistan players were met with considerable controversy after the news broke. Michael Vaughan and Ali raised their voices against this development.

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Significantly, Moeen Ali claimed that he spoke to the ECB regarding this matter, where he reaffirmed the board's commitment to inclusivity. Moeen believes that South Africa has witnessed a lot of discrimination and racism in the past, and that such discrimination now trickles down to Pakistan players who might potentially get neglected for The Hundred 2026.

What Are The Reasons Behind Moeen’s rejection In The Tournament?

Notably, Ali, after reversing his English domestic cricket retirement, signed for Yorkshire ahead of the T20 Blast and registered for the tournament’s auction auction with a base price of £75,000. Unfortunately, his name was not present on any of the eight teams' shortlists of 75 to 100 players that were submitted last week.

As per a report from ESPNCricinfo, there have been many inquiries regarding Moeen Ali's omission from the long list. However, the ECB is clear that teams have already had the chance to register their interest in signing any players they wish to, and that retrospectively adding players to the auction would set a bad example.

According to the report, one of the primary reasons cited by a staff member of a franchise was that Moeen's reserve price might have been an issue. Another highlighted Moeen's age, as he will be 39 by the time the season begins.

While still under shrouds, Moeen's outspoken protest against the shadow ban on Pakistan players by IPL-linked franchises might also be an ironic factor that the England veteran, who himself bears Pakistani roots, has not been signed by any of the eight franchises.

Can Moeen Ali Still Feature In The Hundred 2026?

However, this does not mean that Ali cannot participate in The Hundred through a wild card signing, where each franchise is set to sign two players on £31,000 contracts in June based on their performances in the T20 Blast. Ali could potentially feature there.

Ali has scored 635 runs in Men’s 100 from 30 appearances, where he averages 22.67 with the bat while striking at 138.64. With the ball, Ali has scalped 12 wickets, bowling at an economy rate of 8.25 and an average of 29.91.

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