Moeen Ali named Birmingham Phoenix captain for the Hundred

Moeen Ali will captain Birmingham Phoenix in the inaugural season of the Hundred.

Moeen, a £125,000 'local icon' player for the Phoenix, has been handed the role ahead of a strong set of candidates including Kane Williamson and Liam Livingstone.

He grew up in Sparkhill, just a short distance from Edgbaston, which will host the men's home matches, and his team will include fellow World Cup-winning Birmingham local, Chris Woakes, as well as Pat Brown, the young England seamer who made his T20I debut this winter.

Moeen joins Eoin Morgan (London Spirit) and Aaron Finch (Northern Superchargers) as a confirmed captain in the competition, while Dane Vilas (Manchester Originals) and Sam Billings (Oval Invincibles) are likely to follow. Other teams' decisions over their choice of captain might be affected by availability, with the possibility that Australian leadership candidates miss the latter stages of the tournament to play an ODI series against Zimbabwe.

"Every time that I come to Edgbaston it takes me back to some great first memories of coming here at a very young age," Moeen said. "I grew up in this area and to be the first-ever men's captain of Birmingham Phoenix in a new and inclusive competition that will reach out to communities and welcome them in is very special for me.

"We're a tight-knit city in Birmingham. We have so much around us that brings the people together, no matter who you are or your background. I know how much of a uniting game cricket is and as a leader of the Birmingham Phoenix that is something I definitely want to promote.

"We are lucky to have some of the best players in the country in our squad but also some amazing overseas players, so we know that the cricket is going to be really exciting."

Moeen's record as captain has been honed by his stint in charge of Worcestershire Rapids, whom he led to consecutive Vitality Blast finals at Edgbaston, winning in 2018 and finishing as runners-up to Essex in 2019.

"Worcestershire is where I have developed as a player and as a leader and captaining them in high-profile games like at Finals Day will shape the way I will lead the Birmingham Phoenix," he said.

"It will also help that I've got my Rapids team-mate Pat Brown too because he is one of the best young white-ball bowlers in the country and when you add players like Chris Woakes, we have a strong local flavour that I'm sure can bring home the title."

Andrew McDonald, the men's head coach, said: "Moeen is a fantastic allrounder and has the experience and temperament to lead the team. He started his cricket journey here at Edgbaston from a young age so it feels fitting that he will captain the men's Birmingham Phoenix team.

"He's involved in the local community in Birmingham and I know how much of a popular figure he is at Worcestershire too so I'm sure his efforts on and off the field will help inspire the next generation from our region and beyond to get involved in cricket."