England in conundrum if Moeen is not fit for Lord's Test

McCullum will pick the spinner if his finger recovers, but coach needs a back-up plan

- Cameron Ponsonby

HOW do you solve a problem like Moeen Ali?

Parachuted in on the eve of the Ashes, England’s emergency back-up spinner is now broken himself, and unless a long-running finger injury solves itself in the next week, then Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum may well be forced to pick from the well of County Championship spinners they preferred to ignore just two weeks ago.

Speaking after England’s dramatic two-wicket defeat at Edgbaston, head coach McCullum insisted that despite Moeen’s badly blistered finger restricting the quantity and quality of overs he could bowl, the gamble of his selection had been worth it and that he expects him to play at Lord’s next week.

“I thought Mo did a great job,” said McCullum. “He bowled a couple of absolute jaffas in the game and that was what his role was.

“I’m pretty confident that over the next few days we can get on top of Mo’s finger and that’ll give us an opportunity to select him in the next game. If he’s available, he will be selected.”

McCullum’s confidence is in keeping with the relentlessly positive mantra of this England team, if not the reality of the situation.