England fast bowler Mark Wood has been ruled out of the first Test against Pakistan, starting on Thursday, December 1 in Rawalpindi. He has been struggling with a hip injury that also kept him out of the knockout games of the recently concluded ICC T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia.
Wood has been playing for England across all formats in recent years. The pacer hadn’t travelled with the team to UAE for the preparations ahead of the three-match Test series but was expected to join the squad this weekend.
The 32-year-old has been undergoing rehabilitation and is expected to be available for the second and third Test, set to be played in Multan and Karachi, respectively. Speaking ahead of the first Test in Rawalpindi, England’s Test coach Brendon McCullum confirmed that Mark Wood won’t be a part of the series opener.
“Mark’s not going to make the first test squad unfortunately because of his injury,” head coach Brendon McCullum said while addressing reporters. “We expect him to be ready for the second test and otherwise we’ve got a full squad to pick from,” he added.
Brendon McCullum "Mark Wood is not going to make the first Test unfortunately because of his injury but we expect him to be ready for the second Test, otherwise we have a full squad to choose from" #PakvEng #Cricket
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) November 28, 2022
This is England’s first Test series in Pakistan in 17 years. The last time they toured the country was in 2005-06 for a three-match Test series, which the hosts won 2-0.
“We’ll certainly be pushing for result” – Brendon McCullum on Test series against Pakistan
Former New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum has enjoyed a successful run in his short stint with the side. He stressed that Ben Stokes and Co. will be pushing for results in all the games and ruled out possibility of a draw.
“We’ll certainly be pushing for results because we see it as our obligation to try and ensure that people walk away entertained. And if we get beat, Pakistan, we know, will have played well. I expect us to play well and if we get outplayed, that’s okay too. Looking forward to the opportunity, looking forward to the challenge and looking forward to the hospitality. And hopefully, in a few weeks’ time, everyone will say this has been an amazing series,” McCullum concluded.
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