Moeen Ali set for Warwickshire return, move to Yorkshire unlikely

England all-rounder Moeen Ali is all set to return to his former county club Warwickshire, where he started his cricketing career in 2005.

Moeen will cap off a successful stint with Worcestershire, which began back in 2007. If reports in The Guardian are to be trusted, Moeen is all set to ink a three-year deal with Warwickshire Cricket County Club (WCCC).

The 35-year-old apparently also rejected a cash-rich offer from Yorkshire Cricket County Club (YCCC).

Moeen last week spoke about his plans as well, while taking back his decision to retire from Test cricket.

"This is my last year at Worcester. I'm talking to them; I'm talking to other counties. I do love playing for Worcester. I've been there 15 years now. I moved from Warwickshire, and they obviously helped me develop my game, play for England, but when the time comes, I'll make a decision," he said.

Considered a white-ball specialist, Moeen got into the thick of things for England after a successful Indian Premier League (IPL) with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2021, where he scored 357 runs and picked up six wickets.

In the ongoing T20 Blast, Moeen has been a letdown, scoring just 107 runs from seven appearances while claiming six scalps. 

Yorkshire under Lord Kamlesh Patel is trying to rope in players of Asian origin to start afresh after former player Azeem Rafiq levelled racist charges against the club last year.

Moeen's cousin Kabir Ali is a part of Yorkshire's support staff, who also employs his good friend Adil Rashid in their XI across formats.

However, this is unlikely to lure the left-hander, who has identified Warwickshire as his next destination "despite a lower offer financially".

The CSK player left Warwickshire for Worcestershire due to a lack of chances and eventually made it to the England national side in 2014 on the back of a resounding domestic season.

Moeen has played 64 Tests, 115 ODIs, and 49 T20Is for England.

Overall, he has played 198 First-Class, 232 List-A, and 233 T20 matches in his career spanning 17 years.