England centurion Moeen Ali 'unfazed' by blow on the head at Oval
Moeen hit 108 as England posted 328 in their first innings
Friday 12 August 2016 10:07, UK
Moeen Ali says an early blow on the helmet did not intimidate him as he compiled his third Test century on day one at The Oval.
Moeen was clonked on the head first ball by Wahab Riaz but went on to score 108 as England recovered from 110-5 to post 328 all out after electing to bat against Pakistan.
The left-hander - who was named man of the match in England's third-Test win at Edgbaston following knocks of 63 and 86 not out - struck 13 fours and two sixes after being dropped on nine by Azhar Ali at slip.
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"It's the second time I've been hit here first ball - Mitchell Johnson did it to me last year - but I stayed calm," Moeen, who shared stands of 93 and 79 with Jonny Bairstow (55) and Chris Woakes (45) respectively, told Sky Sports.
"I have worked on my technique quite a bit against the shorter and quicker ball.
"I am still going to get in trouble here and there but I feel like I can deal with it better now - I wasn't fazed at all."
Moeen brought up his second Test hundred of the summer off 140 balls by depositing Yasir Shah into the stands.
The Worcestershire star also scored an unbeaten 155 against Sri Lanka at Durham in May having averaged just 14 against Pakistan in the UAE and 29 against South Africa over the winter.
"I didn't play that well in the winter but I feel like I am in good form now," added Moeen after England reduced Pakistan to 3-1 by the close.
"It's going well but I've got some good players to bat around and the tail all did their job - that made it easier for me."
On his century-sealing six, the 29-year-old added: "I didn't think twice about using my feet - I thought 'why not?' as I backed myself to clear [the ropes] with that delivery."
Pakistan had Bairstow caught off a no-ball on 13 in addition to spilling Moeen and Sky Sports expert Michael Atherton says the tourists "blew" a chance to skittle their hosts.
"I thought Moeen played absolutely beautifully - though the real story is one of missed opportunities for Pakistan," he said. "They had their chance and, I'm afraid, they blew it."
Watch day two England's fourth Test with Pakistan from 10.30am, Friday, Sky Sports 2.
