After narrowly losing the Ashes 2023 opener, England head coach Brendon McCullum suggested a big change in bowling to their playing eleven for the second Test match. The former Kiwi captain revealed that the speedster Mark Wood is in contention for the second match which will kick off at Lord’s on June 28.
Mark Wood, 33, has impressive numbers in Test cricket with 90 wickets in just 28 matches. But the right-arm pacer has struggled to find a regular place in England’s red-ball team due to consistent injuries. His appearances are also limited due to the number of quality pace options available for the Ben Stokes-led team.
James Anderson, Stuart Broad, and Ollie Robinson played as specialist pacers in the first Test match at Edgbaston. But the trio failed to make a considerable impact against Australia’s in-form batters. Anderson was able to pick only one wicket and was restricted to just 17 overs in the second innings.
Apart from Wood, England have Chris Woakes, Josh Tongue, and Matthew Potts available on the bench. But McCullum suggested that Wood offers a real point of difference and will come into consideration for selection for the second Test.
“Woody’s a great bowler. He offers a real point of difference and he’ll always come into consideration for selection – especially on wickets that need a little bit more pace. That’s the beauty of having a good squad: we’ve got guys to pick from,” McCullum said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
McCullum also played down the talks of Ollie Robinson’s controversial spat with Usman Khawaja on Day 3 at the Edgbaston. The Kiwi legend said that it was a normal reaction from Robinson as these kinds of incidents occur in competitive matches.
“I think it happens in all international cricket. It’s two competitive teams going at it and desperate to try and get a performance for their countries,” McCullum added.