Mark Wood raring to face West Indies after success in South Africa

HUW TURBERVILL: Wood, 30, is on a roll. Against West Indies at St Lucia in 2018/19 he recorded match figures of 6 for 93; and he bowled even better in his most recent Test, with combined figures of 9 for 100 at Johannesburg

If spirits drop in the England camp with all this social distancing going on then Mark Wood is probably a good person to have around.

He can bring out his imaginary horse or do some of his zany dancing, perhaps.

That said, the lockdown measures present a challenge for somebody so tactile and effervescent.

“Stokesy can’t get to me because we have to stay 2m apart so he is definitely on my radar. It is a question of how far I can push him before he snaps,” he says.

“I’m not a big golfer, and there’s nothing much else to do. I think yes I will get up to something. I have to stop the boredom. There is an old-school arcade with Street Fighter console and I think that looks tempting. I might have a go on that and I might dress up for the part as well!”

For the 30 England Test candidates holed up in the Ageas Bowl hotel it is probably best that they get to play some cricket soon.

They have a three-day trial match starting on July 1, probably similar to the one West Indies are playing at Emirates Old Trafford at the moment; then the first Test starts on July 8.

Wood, 30, is on a roll. Against West Indies at St Lucia in 2018/19 he recorded match figures of 6 for 93; and he bowled even better in his most recent Test, with combined figures of 9 for 100 at Johannesburg.

Alas he has struggled with injuries as we all know, though, and his 15 Tests have come over a five-year period.

England may well rotate this series, with Jofra Archer, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran and Olly Stone likely to be vying with Wood for three spots alongside Ben Stokes and a spinner. Saqib Mahmood, Jamie and Craig Overton and Lewis Gregory are also in the party.

Interestingly Wood does not necessarily include himself in England’s first-choice XI at home.

“I know I put in probably my best performance in the last game [man of the match at the Wanderers], but I don’t see myself being in the best XI at home. But it depends on conditions. Maybe away conditions probably suit me a little more, like in Johannesburg. I think it will be about who trains well, who looks good, the conditions. I’d love to be in, and I’ll push as hard as I can to keep my spot. We’ll see what happens.

“There’s a good friendly rivalry between us fast bowlers. I cannot speak for Jofra but I definitely want to be quicker than him and I'm sure he wants to be quicker than me. Especially the World Cup, he used to joke about it all the time that they were putting my speeds up higher deliberately. If we were to play together it would be exciting. I don't know how it's going to work, whether we'll dip in and out to keep each other fresh and stuff. I want to bowl fast all the time to prove that I can bowl as fast as Jofra. I would say he's probably quicker than I am and certainly makes it look a lot easier than me. Our friendly rivalry does spur you on to be a better cricketer.”

Despite that modesty, Wood’s confidence seems to be surging now after he lengthened his run-up, and he says: “St Lucia was the quickest I have bowled in Tests. I felt in a great place, and I took that into the 2019 World Cup, then the South Africa tour. The Lions tour to UAE (2018/19) was also good for my confidence, and that is where I made my adjustments.

“I do feel like I have turned a corner with that first five-wicket haul [at the Wanderers]. That was a massive boost. It has made me calmer. I am not trying too hard now, and that’s allowed me to kick on. I just wish I had changed my run-up sooner.

“Just before the 2015 Ashes we were talking about facing Mitchell Johnson who was bowling fast, and it’s nice to think West Indies may be talking about me in the same way, and that they rate me as a cricketer.”

^{Mark Wood's 15 Tests have been spread across five years}

Darren Gough has said this England pace attack is the best since the 2005 Ashes. “That’s a hell of a comment,” said Wood. “I love that! I watched the 2005 series as a kid and they were top of the tops. I was blown away watching them. Then we have had Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson, who are legends. But when you think of this attack, and you add Stokesy who is such a great allrounder, maybe we are not that far off.

“I don’t think it’s an unrealistic target [to win in Australia in 2021/22], especially with everyone fit and firing. Why not?”

This week Wood has been supporting children to be active through cricket as part of Yorkshire Tea National Cricket Week – a week of fun, online activities for children at home or at school from the national cricket charity Chance to Shine.

That has helped keep him busy in this weird world of Lockdown Britain.

Wood says even having meals in the hotel feels strange. “It’s like being back at school when we had an individual table to do a test,” he says. “I spent breakfast looking at the back of Jos Buttler’s head – that’s as interesting as it gets.

“The ECB and the organisers have left no stone unturned. The temperature test in a tent was like something out of a sci-fi movie. Everybody is masked up so you don’t know whether they are friendly or not, some people scowl more than you think.

“The bed has not been made at all. I’m meant to be making it. The cleaner can come in once a week for a deep clean. If you don’t want that to happen, you can refuse it. The state that my room will be in, I’ll definitely be accepting it. It’s entirely up to you. This is your space, your house, trying to create your own family like you have at home while you’ve been isolating. Your own room is yours to look after and I’m not the cleanest. I’ll have clothes and stuff everywhere in a few days’ time.”

“Not using spit on the ball also takes some getting used to, as well as the disrespect of hitting the ball back to the coach with your bat instead of picking it up and throwing it back - that was bizarre as well!”

He also expressed his disappointment that recreational cricket did not get the green light to return yesterday.

“I know cricket clubs are desperate. My club Ashington, who produced me and the Harmison brothers [Steve and Ben], are itching to get back. I just hope we don’t lose youngsters to other sports, and we don’t miss the next Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler or Jofra Archer.”

Yorkshire Tea National Cricket Week works with the charity Chance to Shine to support and grow the grassroots of the game in schools and communities. Join in at www.chancetoshine.org/ncw20

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