Mark Wood has made clear that, selection permitting, he intends to play England’s next two Ashes Tests at Old Trafford and the Kia Oval, to continue the stirring fightback he began at Headingley.
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Wood bowled with extreme pace, hitting a top speed of 96.5mph, and took seven wickets. He also played two important cameos with the bat, hitting 24 and an unbeaten 16, each off eight balls, as England won a thriller by three wickets. Wood was named Player of the Match for his efforts.
The speedster has struggled with injuries throughout his career, a side effect of the pace with which he bowls. The Headingley Test was his first of 2023, and his impact was instant, with England surging to their first win of this year’s Ashes and cutting the scoreline to 2-1.
It had generally been assumed that Wood would play at most one of the last two Tests, given they are back to back. There are nine days between the third and fourth Tests but just three between the fourth and fifth. However, Wood has marked out his stall that he hopes to play in both, pointing to his experience of playing in four of the five Tests in the 2021/22 Ashes down under.
“I did four in Australia, three of them were in a row,” he said. “It’s a big ask, but one I’ve done before, and I will lean on that experience to try to do it again. I will let the body recover, get myself in a good space, let the wounds recover and get myself up for the next one.”
The fourth Test begins at Old Trafford on July 19.
