Moeen Ali backs Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone's inclusion in Test side

England all-rounder Moeen Ali believes that Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone will thrive well in the Test format under the new leadership group of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.

Buttler and Livingstone are currently an integral part of England's white-ball setup. Recently both the hard-hitting batters contributed to putting up a record ODI total of 498, with Butter top-scoring with unbeaten 162 runs, while Liam Livingstone recorded the fastest ODI fifty for his country. 

However, both have failed to cement their place in the Test side. Buttler enjoyed a good run with the England Test side since 2018 when he scored his maiden Test hundred against India but has failed to score big runs and made some crucial mistakes behind the stumps in the Ashes 2021, which made England shift to Ben Foakes behind the sticks.

Livingstone, on the other side, is yet to make his Test debut but has scored over 3000 runs in first-class cricket at a healthy average of 38.4 which is more than his List A and T20 average. 

Talking about the future of both dynamic white ball players, Moeen said Buttler and Livingstone both have the technique and mindset to succeed in the Test arena.

"Jos (Buttler) has played quite a bit already, he's got a couple of really good hundreds in Test cricket, and he does have the technique and the mindset to be a good Test player. Livingstone obviously hasn't played [Test cricket before], but I do believe that he's actually got a very good technique when it comes to batting. He's obviously got a super hitting technique, but generally, his technique is still good," Moeen Ali told the BBC Test Match Special.

The former Test all-rounder feels that Livingstone can be a great pick for the tour to Pakistan as his style of play is in sync with the thought process and vision of the current team management.

"He's played a lot of first-class cricket, and I know he's got some hundreds, so he does have that experience behind him. I think when we're going to Pakistan, he'll be a great shout because he would fit into this environment. Looking from afar when you're watching this brand of Test cricket we're playing at the minute, he's somebody who could potentially thrive off that."