Moeen may open in UAE, says Cook

Alastair Cook has dropped a strong hint that Moeen Ali will open the batting alongside him during England's Test series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates next month, with Alex Hales set to front up for the tour of South Africa in December and January.

Moeen and Hales are competing for the vacancy created by Adam Lyth's failure to cement the role during the Ashes, in which he scored 115 runs at 12.77 in the course of the five-Test series.

Moeen, who has been picked primarily as a spinner throughout the summer, is being considered for a promotion on the slower surfaces of the UAE, partly in order to make extra room to include an extra slow bowler.

Adil Rashid, the Yorkshire legspinner, could make his Test debut against Pakistan, although Samit Patel, a renowned player of spin, is also considered a strong option, having been belatedly added to the squad following a thumb injury to Surrey's Zafar Ansari.

"The conditions are quite unique and I think we have to cover our bases quite a bit," Cook told Sky Sports News. "We might have to do a short-term option; it might be that Mo opens the batting in this series and doesn't open in South Africa, or Alex takes his chance in the warm-up game and we go with that balance of the side.

"We have options, we've got to be pretty clear early on in the tour what we're going to do. We have got our ideas but we haven't chatted with the lads."

Moeen, who has batted at No. 8 since the Lord's Test against New Zealand in May, admitted he would love the chance to open alongside Cook, a role he has performed with some success in one-day cricket.

"I'm pretty happy wherever," he said. "I'd love to open in the UAE if I got the opportunity, but I'm happy at eight. If the captain and the coach wanted me to open I'd be happy to do that."

Whoever gets the job will become Cook's seventh opening partner in three years, since the retirement of Andrew Strauss in 2012, following on from Nick Compton, Joe Root, Michael Carberry, Sam Robson, Jonathan Trott and Lyth.

"It's a little bit frustrating," said Cook. "The guys all had a really good taste of it and all did okay without anyone grabbing it and making it their own, and that's the chance for whoever gets it next.

"It's a big step from county cricket to international cricket and opening the batting as well, you're playing against the best bowlers with the new ball. It's a pretty tough job. No one has quite nailed their opportunity."