THIRD TEST: AUSTRALIA LEAD 2-0 MOEEN GOING GONE

All-rounder admits he’s been missing the magic with both bat and ball TESTS Batting 4 innings 105 runs 25.25 average Bowling 63 overs 172 runs 2 wickets TOUR MATCHES Batting 1 innings 5 runs 5 average Bowling 48 overs 127 runs 2 wickets

MOEEN ALI is captaining a senior England side for the first time this weekend, but admits he has let the team down on this Australia tour.

There has been no lack of effort from the all-rounder, but his batting has only shown fleeting glimpses of what he can produce while his bowling has been bang-average.

A side strain and a finger injury, cause by ripping the skin on the seam of the ball in Brisbane, have made bowling tricky, but neither can be held up as excuses as England find themselves 2-0 down.

At the same time his opposite man, Nathan Lyon, has bowled like a dream for Australia and has had the wood over Moeen in their personal contest.

“He’s got me out four times,” said Moeen with typical candour. “You feel like you’ve let the team down and the captain down especially.

“I’ve done that in the past when Cooky was captain. It’s not always easy. Lyon is bowling so well. Everything – the revs, the areas he’s bowling.

“He has a lot more bowling under his belt as an international spinner and I’m sure he’s had periods when he’s not bowled that well either.

“The hardest thing is you try to compare yourself to that and then you try even harder, but we have different roles in the team, he’s a specialist spinner and I’m batting at No.6.

“I got picked as a second spinner and ended up becoming No.1 and then coming over here I’ve not bowled as well. I just feel there is a lot of work to be done with my bowling and hopefully it gets better as the series goes on. It needs to.”

Moeen’s honesty could be a useful trait in a dressing room working hard to get an elusive win, and it can also be disarming.

Not one to engage in sledging, Moeen prefers to operate in a more mindful way, and when an Aussie player tried to turn the fire onto him, the response was almost perfect.

He revealed: “One of the players told me I was batting one place too high and I said I was actually two spots too high! But it went straight over his head.”

Not every comment from players and fans is as gentle though with Moeen adding: “From the crowd you get a bit, some good, some not so good.

“Somebody asked me what time my kebab shop opened, but that is about it. You get a bit but nothing major.”

As always, runs and wickets speak louder than any words.

Moeen has struggled in both Tests, while opposite number Nathan Lyon has played a crucial role in helping Australia lead 2-0