Mark Wood

Mark Andrew Wood is an English right-arm fast bowler. He plays for Durham in the domestic circuit and is one of the important parts of the English bowling attack. Wood's career has been plagued by injuries but he has found a way back to the national setup with some good performances whenever he gets the chance. The right-arm quick can generate good pace and bowl consistently in the high 140s.

Mark made his debut for Durham in a first-class match against Durham MCCU in the 2011 season. Soon after, he made his List-A debut against Northamptonshire in the same year. In his first season itself, he showed his class as he picked up 19 wickets at an average of 21.63. Paul Collingwood showed faith in him and he was proven right as Wood helped Durham win the county championship in 2013, where he took 27 wickets at an average of 24.07.

Mark Wood got the chance to make his international bow right after the 2015 World Cup debacle for England. He made his debut in an ODI against Ireland in May 2015, the match which marked the start of the 'New England' revolution. Later in that month, he also made his Test debut which was followed by his T20I debut. Ever since he has made his debut, he has been in and around the national team setup. The odd injury here and there has disrupted him from making it to the squad consistently. He has been out of the Test squad majorly due to his fitness issues. However, in the limited-overs formats, he has been a key component of the side offering something different than the other England pacers. He is no mug with the bat either and can contribute effectively in the lower order.

Heading into the 2019 World Cup, Wood had not been in good form. But he came up with the goods when they faced Pakistan on a flat-track in Nottingham. The pitch was a free-scoring surface but Wood did just enough bagging figures of 2/71 as he sealed his spot in the World Cup squad. The Three Lions won the tournament in their backyard and Wood became a part of the squad who lifted the World Cup for the first time in English history. Following the World Cup triumph, Wood was expected to play an important role in the Ashes side but a side strain suffered during the World Cup final saw him miss the remainder of the season and the Ashes. He came back to the side for the tour of South Africa later that year and played the third and the fourth Test. He was impressive in both his outings and was even named the Man of the Match. He performed well in the ODIs and T20Is as well. Injuries though kept hampering his progress and he suffered another side strain injury which ruled him out of the series against Sri Lanka (the series was eventually postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic).

Wood recovered and was named in the England squad for the 2021 T20I World Cup. However, his best came in the 2022 T20 World Cup where he performed excellently throughout the tournament but unfortunately missed the semi-final and final due to injury. England went on to lift the title. He was recalled for the third Test of the 2023 Ashes where he bagged 7 wickets in the match and scored 40 runs from 16 balls that earned him the Man of the Match award. Wood was also part of the England team for the 2023 ODI World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup.

As for the franchise leagues, Wood was picked up by Chennai for the 2018 Indian Premier League season but did not get much game time. Four years later, Lucknow bought him in the auction but he suffered an elbow injury that ruled him out of the tournament. He also played for London Spirit in the 2022 Men's Hundred, where they were knocked out in the Eliminator.