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Munir Ali: ‘When Moeen was 13, I made him a deal. Two years: cricket, cricket, cricket’

I f Moeen Ali takes up England’s Ashes SOS, his Warwickshire comeback will have been brief. Still, Moeen is officially back at his hometown club after a 16-year absence and for a city that doesn’t make a fuss like Birmingham, it feels a pretty big deal.

The England all-rounder has already captained Birmingham Phoenix in the Hundred, but with a three-year deal to lead Birmingham Bears in the T20 Blast – starting last Friday – a local hero has rejoined the club that sit atop the cricket pyramid in these parts, not just the four-week pop-up franchise.

The significance came across while sitting down for a coffee with his father, Munir, close to Edgbaston, a few days before his son picked up a second Indian Premier League winners’ medal. Decked out in the tracksuit of the Moeen Ali High Performance Cricket Academy – the coaching school he runs with his remarkable family – the 68-year-old was as talkative as Moeen had warned.

It followed a slightly sheepish invitation on my part. Seven years a south Birmingham resident, I have never ceased to be amazed by the number of locals who know the Alis. It’s not just club cricketers, of whom hundreds have played with or against them. When small talk turns to cricket with shopkeepers, taxi drivers or parents at school, so many cite a connection. Yet despite getting to know Moeen, Kadeer and their cousin, Kabir, during this time, I had somehow never met Munir.

“Oh yes, Moeen is ‘cousin’ to a lot of people. I’m always ‘uncle’,” says Munir, smiling at this through a thick moustache that curls up at the ends like an army general. “Moeen is very popular and I’m happy he is back at Warwickshire. In fact I persuaded him to come back. Worcestershire and Yorkshire offered more money, but he

Read more on theguardian.com