‘I’ve got a point to prove to myself’ – Mark Wood
Mark Wood made the big call to cut short his Indian Premier League 2018 stint at Chennai Super Kings and focus on red-ball cricket ahead of a long Test summer, and the decision is something he is happy with.
Wood played just the one game for Chennai, against Mumbai Indians, and conceded 0/49 back in April. Rather than spending time bowling in the nets thereafter, Wood decided to ensure his Test career didn’t suffer.
He returned to Durham in time for their County Championship Division Two game against Derbyshire, and promptly registered a career-best 6/46. He was subsequently named in the England Test squad for the series against Pakistan, and the gist of it is that Wood is “having fun”.
Reflecting on his IPL stint, however, Wood hoped to return one day and prove himself. “I'm glad to be back," he told ESPNCricinfo. "It was a difficult decision and I was 50-50 whether I leave. Andrew Strauss rang me up and said, 'if you're not playing, there's real value in coming home' to push my case and try to keep my spot in the team.
“I worked so hard trying to get back in the Test side. At the time I wondered whether it was the right decision but as soon as I got back and took some wickets, it was the right decision. I would have liked to have played more (in the IPL). It was hard going travelling every day and not playing. I was the only member of the England side who hadn't been home for about seven months so that side was hard.
“I got why I wasn't playing ... I didn't really set the world alight in my first game and it was always going to be difficult to come back in. I'm disappointed that I didn't get to prove myself in that competition. To have one game and not do well leaves a bit of a sour taste. I'd like to go back and have one more crack at it and prove myself at that standard."
That said, he will still have to fight for a spot in the Test side, alongside Chris Woakes, what with the England management’s horses for courses approach. But Wood doesn’t mind. “I want to be a bowler for all conditions,” he was quoted as saying by the Guardian. “But I’d certainly be happy if they said Woakes, Jake Ball or whoever is more suited to a pitch – I wouldn’t have a problem.
“More than anything I want the team to do well. Hopefully I can bring something else when conditions aren’t like that, where it’s drier, reverses or a slower pitch.”
Wood, so far, has 28 wickets from 11 Tests, at an average of 41, and though his career has been blighted by injuries, he conceded those figures needed improvement. “I need to get more wickets, I need to be more consistent,” said Wood. “To be honest, I’ve got a lot to prove to the selectors, coaches, media, the fans because I’m a guy people probably had high hopes for and I’ve not done it consistently enough. An average of 40 is pretty average to be honest and I definitely want to lower that.
“I’ve got a point to prove to myself that I am good enough to do it at that level. Am I really as good as I think I am? Am I as good as the commentators, selectors think I am? Can I live up to that? I’ve got a long way to go.”
The first of two England-Pakistan Tests begins at Lord’s on May 24.