England pacer Mark Wood has been ruled out of competitive cricket for four months after undergoing left knee surgery in London on Wednesday. The four-month recovery timeline will see him miss England’s five-Test home series against India in June. However, he is likely to regain fitness before the Ashes series down under later this year.
Wood was taken out of England’s Champions Trophy campaign and remained warming the benches with a heavily strapped leg after limping off the field in the group stage game against Afghanistan. He was four balls into his fourth over when he appeared to be in discomfort with his left leg. Although he did complete the over and returned to bowl another four overs after staying off the field for half hour, he could not continue further for England in both the game and the remaining tournament. Saqib Mahmood replaced him in their next match against South Africa.
Once back in England, scans confirmed medial ligament damage in his left knee, leading him to opt for surgery.
“I’m gutted to be out for so long after representing England across all formats since the start of last year. But I’ve got every confidence that I’ll be back firing on all cylinders now that I’ve been able to sort my knee out,” Wood said following the announcement of the news.
“I want to thank the surgeon, the doctors, staff, my England teammates and coaches for their support – and, of course, our fans. I can’t wait to get back and contribute to what is going to be a huge 2025 for us as a team.”
Wood bowled the fastest recorded four-over spell against Australia just a game before he was sat out of England’s Champions Trophy plans. His average bowling speed during those overs was a searing 151.2 kph. That is why he remains central to England’s Ashes campaign this year on Australia’s pace-friendly tracks. The last time he toured Australia for a Test series, he grabbed 17 wickets for a bargain of a tick more than 26 runs apiece. This is also why England would not want to rush him back to competitive cricket, though if his recovery goes smoothly, he could make a comeback in England’s last Test against India in July.
For a bowler like Mark Wood, who has seen a career blighted by injuries, only an exceedingly careful approach needs to be adopted. England had already halted him from entering the IPL mega-auction last year to manage his workload, and he is also expected not to feature in any of England’s white-ball games this year.
Although Wood is the most pressing of them, England have a handful of fast bowlers-related injuries in their camp. Their next assignment is a one-off red-ball game versus Zimbabwe, followed by a white-ball series where they will contest West Indies. With Wood ruled out, Brydon Carse recovering from a toe blister that worsened into an infection during the Champions Trophy, and Jofra Archer still building up his workload, England need a reliable solution to their pace-bowling woes.
