Wood’s latest injury blow is a great shame for himself, England and his IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants, especially so after his impressive performance in England’s T20I series in India early last year.

One of the fastest bowlers on the planet, he will not be an easy man to replace. Here are the pros and cons of seven potential replacements – who all went unsold at this year’s IPL auction – for Wood at Lucknow Super Giants.

George Garton

Pros: While not as quick as was once thought, Garton is still a useful T20 player. A whippy, left-arm quick who is both a handy lower-order batter and a superb fielder, Garton was a key member of the Southern Brave side that won the inaugural edition of The Hundred.

Cons: Garton has minimal IPL and international experience, and has gone for runs in his brief exposure to both settings. He went at nine per over for Royal Challengers Bangalore in last year’s IPL and was expensive on his T20I debut for England earlier this year, conceding 57 runs from his four overs.

Gerald Coetzee

Pros: A highly-rated 21-year-old South African quick, who despite minimal experience, was picked up by Rajasthan Royals as an injury replacement in last year’s IPL. Coetzee was earmarked as a future star by Ian Bishop following his performances at the 2020 U19 World Cup.

Cons: At this point in time, Coetzee only has 17 professional T20 games under his belt and while the hype around him may be justified, his record – 16 wickets at 30.62 at an economy over eight – does not yet stand out.

Blessing Muzarabani

Pros: The Zimbabwe quick has a burgeoning reputation in white-ball cricket. The 25-year-old has been one of the standout ODI bowlers in the world since the start of the pandemic and recently enjoyed a productive stint with the Multan Sultans in this year’s PSL, where he took 3-18 off his four overs in a win over Peshawar Zalmi.

Cons: Like most of this list, Muzarabani – aside from his PSL stint this year – has limited experience in the most competitive T20 leagues in the world. His recent record at the death in T20 cricket is not spectacular, and it is likely Lucknow will look for more in that department from one of their overseas signings.

Kane Richardson

Pros: The 31-year-old Australian is one of the most experienced players on this list, having taken part in four IPL campaigns and with 55 international appearances to his name. Richardson was the sixth-leading wicket-taker in this winter’s BBL.

Cons: His recent T20I record is not hugely impressive. While he is still taking wickets, he has gone at 8.93 runs per over in T20I cricket since the start of 2021.

Reece Topley

Pros: A left-armer who brings a different angle of attack, Topley recently enjoyed a decent series with England in a high-scoring series in Barbados. He swung the new ball up front and bowled a decisive penultimate over in England’s win in the second T20I; he is probably the most versatile T20 bowler on this list, and touched 88mph on the speed gun in that series in the Caribbean.

Cons: Topley’s career has been plagued by injury, robbing him of the chance to bank up experience that he otherwise could have had by this point in his career.

Andrew Tye

Pros: Another experienced Australian with IPL and international experience who is off the back of an excellent BBL campaign, Tye has built up a reputation as a death-overs specialist over the years.

Cons: Although excellent in his first full IPL season back in 2018, there is a school of thought that his particular method at the death has been found out by the very best batters. Across the 2019 and 2020 IPL campaigns, Tye has travelled at nearly 11 runs per over.

Sheldon Cottrell

Pros: A left-armer with decent pace who has both international and IPL experience. His recent T20I record is excellent, going at fewer than eight runs per over in each of the past four calendar years.

Cons: Sheldon Cottrell’s IPL experience is not that extensive – he played six games for Punjab back in 2020. He is also not that regular a death bowler.