"Confidence was very low and nobody was in form" - Moeen Ali on England's dismal 2023 World Cup campaign

England all-rounder Moeen Ali believes batters being out of form and low on confidence hurt them during their dismal 2023 World Cup campaign.

Pitted among the heavy favorites to defend the title, England flattered to deceive by winning only three of their nine outings. While they eventually finished sixth, there were large portions of the World Cup when England were unfathomably at the bottom of the standings.

Speaking to Gulf News, Ali admitted that England could not play their aggressive game in the World Cup, which has been their routine over the last decade.

"I think the confidence was very low and nobody was in form, Moeen Ali said. "And to some of us, it was becoming more internal. Sometimes the harder you try, the worse you get. I think we’ve been playing so well for 10 years before that.

"If you look at the best teams, India, who played well, were aggressive, South Africa were generally aggressive and so were the Australians. We just couldn’t do what we normally do and the timing was really bad."

Ali added that the batters were woefully out of form after several years of tremendous performances.

"We didn’t play well throughout the World Cup. The batters were out of form and it happens in cricket. We’ve been so good over a long period of time now, but it is just one of those things that we just didn’t perform. It is a World Cup and a special one where all teams were good, but we weren’t just good," Ali added.

Moeen Ali was a crucial part of England's failings, enduring a horrendous tournament with bat and ball. The 36-year-old scored only 95 runs in six innings at an average of 15.83 and picked up five wickets at an average of almost 50.

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"Didn’t have enough runs on the board" - Moeen Ali

The spinners were a major letdown for England during the 2023 World Cup.

Moeen Ali believed that not having enough runs on the board played a part in England's disappointing bowling performances throughout the 2023 World Cup.

Leg-spinner Adil Rashid led the side with 15 wickets, while David Willey and Chris Woakes picked up 11 and 10 scalps, respectively.

"We have played a lot in India before. All depends on the wickets and the ground etc, So we had the spinners but didn’t have enough runs on the board. Everything went wrong," Ali continued.

Moeen Ali asserted his confidence in the side to put on a better show in trying to defend their T20 World Cup title next year.

"We want to try and win again. I feel we are a better Twenty20 side. I’m sure we will come back stronger," Ali concluded.

England triumphed in the T20 World Cup in Australia last year. They will look to defend their title in the upcoming edition at the West Indies and U.S.A. in June next year.

Currently, the side is involved in a three-match ODI series against the West Indies nodded at one apiece.