The scalp helped England fight back into day one of the fourth Ashes Test at Sydney, pegging Australia back from 111-1 to 117-3 with two quick wickets. James Anderson dismissed Marcus Harris, the opener edging to first slip, but with Labuschagne and Steve Smith joining forces with a healthy platform to build on, England fans could have been forgiven for fearing the worst.

Instead, Wood tore in and target the top of off with a 145.4kph missile. Labuschagne was forced to play, but could only edge the ball behind to Jos Buttler.

It was the second time in two games that Wood had dismissed Labuschagne. The No.3 has been virtually impenetrable in the first innings of Test matches, heading into the Boxing Day Test with a low score of 47 since he replaced Smith as a concussion sub during the 2019 Ashes.

Wood has since dismissed him for 1 and 28, offering a small measure of encouragement for England to take forward from a bleak tour.

Wood’s performance throughout the day was terrifyingly quick. Before the ball to dismiss Labuschagne, CricViz tweeted that Wood had maintained an average pace of 148.9kph, or 92.5mph, the fastest in his career so far. Wood was on fire, and it was Labuschagne who ended up scorched.

Mark Wood's average speed in this innings so far is 148.9 kph – the fastest he's bowled in a Test innings in his Test career. #Ashes @IGCom pic.twitter.com/rOtlAE436M

— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) January 5, 2022

Watch the Wood brute to dismiss Labuschagne below:

Clocking in at 90.35 mph 🔥#Ashes pic.twitter.com/QhbEg1nX0t

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 5, 2022