Mark Wood raced out of the gates in his first appearance of the 2023 Ashes, consistently topping 90 miles per hour (mph) and even touching 96.5 mph in his first spell in Test cricket since England’s tour of Pakistan in late 2022.
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Wood has been a notable absentee over the first two Tests. At Edgbaston, James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Ollie Robinson were the three frontline England seamers, all of whom operate in the 77-83mph bracket.
With Wood not 100 percent fit for the Lord’s Test, England instead turned to Josh Tongue who was comfortably the quickest member of their attack, occasionally reaching the 90mph-mark.
The Durham speedster was unleashed at Headingley with the series on the line, instantly reaching some of the quickest speeds registered in the UK since data began to be tracked.
In his first over at Headingley, Wood bowled six deliveries in excess of 90mph, with his quickest monitored at 95mph on the speed gun.
Remarkably, his second over was even quicker, reaching 96.5mph at its peak. According to CricViz, the last time an over in England was bowled as fast as what Wood produced at Headingley this morning, with as much as swing, was Brett Lee in 2005.
The last time an over in England was as fast as Mark Wood’s opening over, with as much swing, was Brett Lee in 2005.#ENGvAUS #Ashes
— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) July 6, 2023
That Wood was able to bowl with such pace would have been a welcome relief for England, whose attack has been guilty of being one-paced throughout the series. This was Wood’s first Test (or even first-class) appearance since the 2022/23 Karachi Test match, and his first outing in any format since representing Lucknow Super Giants against Punjab Kings in the IPL in April.
Wood’s blistering spell eventually accounted for Usman Khawaja, who was bowled by a 95mph delivery that swung late into him. Stuart Broad dismissed David Warner for the 16th time in Test cricket in the first over of the day.
