MOEEN Ali finished the opening day of the Ashes on 26 not out as the Worcestershire star made the England XI for the first Test against Australia in Cardiff.

The off-spinner came in to bat at number eight in the hosts’ 343-7, blasting a six and two fours off 38 balls over 54 minutes.

Joe Root was the star of the day for England with 134 off 166 balls, including 17 fours, while Yorkshire team-mate Gary Ballance hit 61 and Durham’s Ben Stokes added 52.

Aussie opening bowlers Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood took three wickets each with Mitchell Johnson failing to strike a blow.

Root made Australia pay for wicketkeeper Brad Haddin dropping him second ball with a counter-attacking century that transformed day one.

His seventh Test hundred from just 118 balls — the fastest scored in the first innings of an Ashes series — was the driving force as England recovered from a perilous 43-3.

Root shared in a stand of 153 with Ballance before a partnership of 84 with Stokes against an off-colour Australia attack.

Conditions eased under ever sunnier skies after a cloudy morning following captain Alastair Cook’s decision to bat first.

Root survived later scrapes against Nathan Lyon on 61 and 79, a DRS lbw procedure marginally going his way and then a possible inside-edge on to pad looping to short leg where former Worcestershire player Steve Smith ought to have held on.

Warwickshire’s Ian Bell made only a single, taking his sorry recent record to 56 runs in nine Test innings when he missed Starc’s full-length swing to be lbw.

Opener Cook had earlier departed for 20 when he was undone by a little extra bounce from off-spinner Lyon to be caught behind cutting.

Jos Buttler (27) chipped his wicket away to mid-on for a soft dismissal just before stumps.