Mark Wood may miss the first two Test matches of England’s tour of India early next year, after it was announced this morning (August 21) that he has signed for Dubai Capitals in the ILT20 League which clashes with the five match series.

Wood is among several England players among the new and retained names for the 2024 edition of the league, which starts in January and finishes in mid-February. England’s Test tour in India starts on January 25, with the second Test match starting on February 2. The ILT20 final is set to be played on February 12, three days before the third Test match gets underway.

News of Wood potentially joining the tournament first emerged last week, after Dubai Capitals Tweeted out a teaser which said: ‘Out next signing is someone you woodn’t want to mess with’. The text was accompanied by an image of a silhouette which looked similar to Wood’s, and an England flag.

Our next signing is someone you woodn’t want to mess with 🤫#CapitalsFam, comment 👇 with your guesses 🤔 #SoarHighDubai #WeAreCapitals pic.twitter.com/P6Ow1sjkyd

— Dubai Capitals (@Dubai_Capitals) August 19, 2023

Wood, 33, has had significant injury problems throughout his career, and it’s neither unimaginable nor unfair to expect that he would want to take advantage of lucrative franchise deals while they are still available to him. There is no published information on what players in the ILT20 League are paid, but it’s reasonable to expect that top salaries will be in the six-figure bracket.

Wood was central to England’s Ashes campaign this summer. After coming into the team for the third Test match at Headingley, he took 14 wickets across the final three Test matches, including a five-for.

Joe Root is also among the England players contracted to play in the league. Root featured in last year’s Capitals campaign, but it is unlikely he would miss the Test matches in India to continue playing in the league.

Wood may join up with the England squad in India after the end of the league to feature in the final two Test matches, if not the final three. However, given his workload as part of England’s World Cup squad in just over a month’s time, as well as the ILT20 League, there will be concern over how likely he could be to pick up an injury before he is able to come into the Test side.

The ECB had no comment.

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