WORCESTERSHIRE’S Moeen Ali could win a shock promotion to open the batting for England in next week’s final Test against Australia at the Kia Oval.

England will be tempted, and arguably wise, to begin their preparations for a tough winter by selecting Yorkshire leg-spinning all-rounder Adil Rashid with the series win already secured.

Whatever England’s pro testations to the contrary, there will be some thoughts already about the next big test, against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates.

To that end, Alastair Cook and Trevor Bayliss may need to balance risk and reward with their team selection and tactics.

Whether England’s pair of two-day warm-up matches against Pakistan ‘A’ in Sharjah will prove effective preparation for what lies ahead is debatable.

However the batsmen cope, though, it will be crucial the tourists have something with which to return fire.

There is relatively little evidence so far this year that off-spinner Moeen will be able to carry that responsibility on his own and, with only Joe Root turning the ball part-time and the same way in England’s current team, they have to try to find a way of increasing their stocks.

Rashid has been an ever-present in Ashes squads this summer but has not yet done anything other than carry drinks and or make an early return to Yorkshire once each Test has got under way.

If England are going to find out about a spinner at Test level, on home soil The Oval is still the best way to do it — they may just be hatching a plan to do so.

It could be too that Rashid’s county colleague Adam Lyth, rather than Moeen, turns out to be the fall guy. Lyth has been unproductive since his maiden century against New Zealand at Headingley.

In Moeen, England have a feasible if slightly wild-card alternative to open the innings alongside Cook — creating the gap for a second spinner at number eight, where Rashid’s batting ought not to let the side down