Moeen Ali: Yorkshire move against advice

“A lot of people were disappointed that I came to Yorkshire, but if you can change someone’s mind, you’ve done a great job.

“Yorkshire have been doing a great job, so why not be a part of that? There are probably people from a similar background to me, a South Asian background, who might be hesitant to come and be themselves and play, and I don’t want anyone to think that.”

Helping to encourage team performance and engagement went hand-in-hand, he said.

“My main job is to do well for the county and hopefully win trophies in the next couple of years but if you make a difference…

“It’s a huge area and there are a lot of South Asian players. Hopefully there will be a lot more players coming through the county system who don’t feel there are any issues holding them back.

“I just want people to come and express themselves, play their game and enjoy the game with everybody. There are ups and downs in cricket and in life but sometimes you have to deal with it.”

“All the provinces and the ECB are trying to find ways and do a good job. Father, if you always score a lot of runs, teams should choose you, and this is the main thing for a professional cricketer, to do it.

“You just want to make it easy for everyone. Give them the idea that no matter what background you come from, no matter what you look like, no matter what you do, there are no obstacles in the way. That’s the point and it should be.”

Alli spoke of his desire to “build bridges” when he first signed for the club, but said his priority was to perform for his new county and help them lift their first T20 Blast title.

With a 35-ball 50 against Derbyshire, and good economy rates as a bowler in the opening three matches, he is starting to make good on that.

“If I can come to Yorkshire and help us win the Blast over the next couple of years, that will be amazing,” he said.