ENG vs IND: England pacer Mark Wood hopeful of comeback in fifth Test against India

England's pace spearhead Mark Wood is eyeing a return to Test cricket and hopes to feature in the fifth and final match of the ongoing series against India. The 35-year-old fast bowler is currently recovering from a knee injury and believes he could be fit in time for the Oval Test, scheduled to begin on July 31.Wood sustained medial ligament damage to his left knee during the 2025 Champions Trophy and had to limp off the field mid-match. He underwent knee surgery in March and was subsequently advised a four-month rehabilitation period-effectively ruling him out of the five-match series. However, Wood has made steady progress and is now hopeful of making a late appearance.advertisementSpeaking to BBC Test Match Special, Wood said he had resumed light bowling and was cautiously optimistic about being available for the fifth Test.
"Rehab is going well. I've just started bowling very lightly, so I'm officially on the comeback trail now," Wood said."I'm hoping to still play a part in this series so I get to have a look at some of the players here who I might come up against. I'm still targeting probably the last Test. Anything before that is maybe a bit too soon. The last Test-I might not get there-but at the minute, that's still my focus."The fifth Test of the England-India series will be held at The Kia Oval from July 31. To prove his fitness, Wood is expected to play in the County Championship match for Durham against Somerset, starting July 22.advertisementAlthough his return would be a major boost for England, the team management is unlikely to rush him back, especially with the Ashes looming on the horizon. England's pace attack has already been depleted by injuries in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, with several frontline bowlers sidelined.Olly Stone and Jofra Archer are both in rehabilitation, with Archer expected to be available for the second Test. Reports suggest he will feature for Sussex against Durham in the County Championship on Sunday. Archer, who last played a Test in May 2021, has since only featured in white-ball cricket.Wood admitted that the comeback has been slow, but he remains hopeful."It's been a bit slow to start with. I haven't been able to do a lot, but it's starting to speed up now. I'm getting some bowling in-hopefully not too much longer," he said."I am still hoping that I can play a part right at the end of the series, but I'll just wait and see." You May Also Like

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

News18

29 minutes ago

• News18

Sourav Ganguly On Shubman Gill Era: '...Was Never Worried About Indian Cricket'

Sourav Ganguly is confident that Indian cricket will be alright in the new era with Shubman Gill leading a team without Kohli, Sharma and Ashwin. The India-England series for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy marks the beginning of a new era in Indian cricket. A Shubman Gill-led team embarks on a tour of England without the legendary Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. Despite the expected challenges of this transition, Sourav Ganguly expressed confidence in India's smooth transition, attributing it to the country's robust domestic structure. 'I was never worried about Indian cricket. There will be someone taking Indian cricket forward. I am not surprised with Yashasvi (Jaiswal) because I rate him as a fantastic batter, he is someone who should play all formats," Sourav Ganguly was quoted as saying by PTI. Jaiswal has been impressive since the start of his Test career. The left-hander continued his excellent form with a 101-run knock, setting India on course for a substantial first-innings total. He shared a 91-run partnership with fellow opener KL Rahul (42) for the first wicket. 'I am not surprised by Yashasvi's performance because I have seen him play in Australia, the West Indies, and India, hope he keeps on performing like this but Shubman Gill's improvement is commendable. 'Shubman and his batting away from home, I am telling you India has a lot of talent, there are 4-5 players waiting now who, when given a chance, will score runs," Ganguly said. Ganguly acknowledged that replacing someone like Kohli is challenging but praised Gill's quality, especially in the number four slot, which Kohli had made his own. 'Virat is a class player, finding his replacement will take time. But the rest, I wasn't, I was not surprised by what I saw with Shubman. There is too much quality in Indian cricket because of the system, the quality of domestic cricket, leagues, because of the kind of time and money associations put in developing a player," said Ganguly, who has served as the BCCI president in the past. The former India captain also appreciated the change in approach by wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant, who has managed to curb his natural aggressive instincts. 'Rishabh plays fast bowling well, I didn't like his batting in Australia, he was playing a lot of shots. Yesterday (Friday) he did restrictive batting, he has curtailed his game on his strengths, he is a great player in Tests, and will play all the three formats," Ganguly added. (With inputs from PTI) About the Author Ritayan Basu First Published: June 21, 2025, 20:48 IST

Time of India

31 minutes ago

• Time of India

Ishan Kishan to make county debut with Nottinghamshire, replaces SA keeper Verreynne on two-match deal

1 2 3 India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan has joined Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club on a two-match County Championship deal, the English side announced on its X (formerly twitter) handle on Friday evening. Kishan, who has played all three formats for India, will be available for selection for the first-class fixtures against Yorkshire at home ground Trent Bridge starting Sunday while the next game will be away at Taunton against Somerset. The Patna-born Jharkhand cricketer will serve as a short-term replacement for World Test Championship-winning South Africa wicketkeeper-batter Kyle Verreynne. The Protea will be away on national duty to play a two-Test series in Zimbabwe. Kishan turned out for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) where he scored a 45-ball century against Rajasthan Royals and remained unbeaten on 106 from 47 balls. "I'm feeling very excited to get my first taste of playing county cricket in England, and it will be a great chance to showcase my skills," Ishan was quoted as saying by the club website. "I want to make sure I am the best cricketer I can be, and playing in English conditions will really help me to learn new skills. Trent Bridge is such a famous ground that is well-known in India and around the world, and I am really excited that I will be playing there," the southpaw added. Meanwhile, speaking on Kishan's inclusion to the squad, Nottinghamshire head coach Peter Moores said, "We're all very pleased to have secured the services of Ishan for these next two Championship fixtures while Kyle is away with South Africa." A wicketkeeper-batter himself during his playing days, the former Three Lions player and coach added, "We want players to be themselves and to bring their own game, and something that especially excites me about Ishan is how keen he is to be involved in county cricket. He brings proven quality in his ball-striking, as a hard-hitting middle-order batter, but while he's still developing his red-ball game, this spell will be really beneficial for him, and for us. " India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan has joined Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club on a two-match County Championship deal, the English side announced on its X (formerly twitter) handle on Friday evening. Kishan, who has played all three formats for India, will be available for selection for the first-class fixtures against Yorkshire at home ground Trent Bridge starting Sunday while the next game will be away at Taunton against Somerset. The Patna-born Jharkhand cricketer will serve as a short-term replacement for World Test Championship-winning South Africa wicketkeeper-batter Kyle Verreynne. The Protea will be away on national duty to play a two-Test series in Zimbabwe. Kishan turned out for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) where he scored a 45-ball century against Rajasthan Royals and remained unbeaten on 106 from 47 balls. "I'm feeling very excited to get my first taste of playing county cricket in England, and it will be a great chance to showcase my skills," Ishan was quoted as saying by the club website. "I want to make sure I am the best cricketer I can be, and playing in English conditions will really help me to learn new skills. Trent Bridge is such a famous ground that is well-known in India and around the world, and I am really excited that I will be playing there," the southpaw added. Meanwhile, speaking on Kishan's inclusion to the squad, Nottinghamshire head coach Peter Moores said, "We're all very pleased to have secured the services of Ishan for these next two Championship fixtures while Kyle is away with South Africa." A wicketkeeper-batter himself during his playing days, the former Three Lions player and coach added, "We want players to be themselves and to bring their own game, and something that especially excites me about Ishan is how keen he is to be involved in county cricket. He brings proven quality in his ball-striking, as a hard-hitting middle-order batter, but while he's still developing his red-ball game, this spell will be really beneficial for him, and for us. "

NDTV

32 minutes ago

• NDTV

From 430/3 To 471 All Out: India Register Embarrassing 'Lowest' Record After Brutal Collapse vs England

Three centurions, yet a team could not score 500. It happenned with India in the most unexpected way on Saturday. At one point of time, India looked in a solid spot to easily cross the 500-mark, yet it was not to be despite centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant. From 430/3, India were all out for 471. The last seven wickets fell for just 41 runs. The score of 430 is the highest a team was three wickets down from which they were bowled out without getting to 500. India's score is also the lowest all out total when a team has three individual centurions. Lowest all out totals to include three individual centuries 471 Ind vs Eng Headingley 2025 475 SA vs Eng Centurion 2016 494 Aus vs Eng Headingley 1924 497 WI vs Ind Kolkata 2002 Pacer Josh Tongue led a strong fightback from England's bowlers to end up with a four-wicket haul as the hosts bowled out India for 471 on Day Two of the first Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy Test at Headingley on Saturday. At one point, India looked to reach at least a score between 500 and 600 when they were placed at 430/3, with Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant batting on centuries each. But India lost their last seven wickets for 41 runs, as England triggered a stunning slide to dismiss them for a score below 500, with Tongue picking 4-86. For India, it would be slightly underwhelming to end at a score below 500 after three of the top five batters made centuries, and they will be very keen to make good use of these bowling conditions, especially with fast-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah at the helm. What will also help India is the overcast conditions, due to light rain and thunderstorm predictions for the afternoon, with the hover cover coming on the field after their innings was over. But with the players walking off the field after coming on initially as the drizzle's intensity increased, it means there will be a delayed start to England's first innings. In the morning, resuming on 395/3, India's great batting show continued with captain Shubman Gill's career-best 147 and vice-captain Rishabh Pant's astonishing 134. Despite that, India had a first session of two halves – 53/0 before the drinks break was taken. By then, Pant had hit his seventh Test century and gone past MS Dhoni (six) for the most Test centuries hit by an Indian wicketkeeper. The flamboyant Pant's third Test hundred in England, laced with magnificence and madness in stroke-play in equal measure, is a feat no other visiting keeper has achieved before. But after the drinks break, India lost four wickets, including both centurions Gill and Pant. Gill got Day Two underway with a gorgeous extra cover drive off Chris Woakes for four before Pant pulled and steered Brydon Carse for boundaries, despite missing a hack down the ground off the pacer. The duo continued to trade in boundaries, as Pant went into the 90s with a falling scoop off Shoaib Bashir for four, before walloping him for six. Pant then stepped out to heave Bashir for a one-handed six over midwicket to bring up his enthralling century off 146 deliveries and celebrated with his signature somersault, a skill he picked up from undergoing gymnastics practice in his growing-up years. Pant then brought up 200 runs of his stand with Gill when he managed to clear long-off for six off Bashir before the 209-run partnership was snapped by the off-spinner when the Indian captain holed out to deep square leg, as he fell for a classy 147. Pant's fun continued when he creamed Stokes for four, and slog-swept Bashir for six, before pulling off the England captain for another boundary. But from the other end, Karun Nair 's comeback to the Test team after eight years lasted just four balls as he reached out to a wide ball off Stokes, and Ollie Pope at cover took a brilliant leaping catch to dismiss him for a duck. With some reverse swing on offer, Pant was troubled by inswingers from Josh Tongue, before shouldering arms to a sharp nip-backer from around the wicket and was trapped lbw right in front of the stumps. Soon after, Shardul Thakur slashed Stokes behind to wicketkeeper Jamie Smith at the stroke of lunch, as England walked off with a smile on their face. Shortly after lunch, Tongue lured Jasprit Bumrah into the drive, and the outside edge was caught by a second slip. Tongue came back to cramp Ravindra Jadeja for room and succeeded, as the left-handed batter chopped onto his stumps, before he castled Prasidh Krishna to ensure India's innings was wrapped up in 23 minutes of the second session.