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Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has noted that Mark Wood is an amalgamation of former teammates Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee. Ponting felt that Wood’s sheer pace and subtle movement with the ball were one of the biggest factors in England’s victory at Headingley.
Wood rocked the Australians with his brute pace from the start in the third Ashes Test at Leeds, topping out at over 90mph. The 33-year-old also bowled plenty of short balls throughout his spell and collected seven wickets, including Fever in the first innings, winning man of the match.
Speaking in an episode of ICC Review, Ponting feels that a bowler who can run fast with movement is a trump card. He said:
“Wood) is a bit like him (Johnson) and a bit like Brett Lee in his prime, I guess too. Change bowling first, bowling fast, intimidating the batsmen, getting a little bit of action when he was there. He’s just the ultimate strike weapon. I think the difference He was there to see him at Headingley.”
he added:
“I mean someone who can run and run that fast but he gets movement with the ball too. His width of touch, the way he launches the ball is great for someone who runs inside the ball and hits as fast as he does.”
Despite his injury, Wood remained optimistic about playing the next two Ashes Tests. The Durham Speedster driver also warned Australia not to launch more ‘lightnings’ in the fourth test, which begins on July 19 in Manchester.
“The biggest challenge is getting him to play the next two games.” – Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting confirmed that Mark Wood has injury concerns and that he may be ineffective if he fails to reach a speed of 90mph. He said:
“I think the biggest challenge is to get him through the next two matches. I know he said after Headingley that he passed three Test matches in a row in Australia in the last Ashes series and he did it really well. The challenge for him would be if he keeps his pace in that kind of mid-90 mile per hour because they’re like those guys you know he’s not that tall, he’s very slippery and when they’re not at their absolute top pace it can be easy to run into.”
However, the Tasmanian warned Australia that Wood could run through the tourists’ battling unit if he can keep up the pace.
“They don’t bounce sharp, they just slide on the bat and they don’t have a lot of movement, but if he can keep his pace at an absolute top as he was at Leeds, he’s going to be really dangerous for the Aussie, that’s for sure.”
The right-arm batsman currently has 97 scalps in 29 Tests at 29.69 with two wickets and could be the X-factor for England again at Old Trafford.
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