England go into Sunday’s crucial third Test against Pakistan without the fast bowler Mark Wood after a second cortisone injection to his chronic left ankle problem in the space of six months.
The 25-year-old, who suffers ongoing discomfort in the joint due to the repeated impact of bowling, played in the first two Tests in Abu Dhabi and Dubai but will sit out the finale, which Alastair Cook’s side need to win to square the series.
Wood, who has previously said he may require surgery on the problem, first received a jab during the summer’s Ashes win over Australia, when he missed the third Test at Edgbaston before returning for the final two matches of the series.
He underwent a further one here on Tuesday but despite its painkilling effects the England management will not press him into service for the Sharjah Test, instead keeping him rested before the one-dayers and Twenty20s that follow.
Wood, who cut a glum figure at training on Friday after his Test best figures of three for 39 in the first innings in Dubai, will continue to be rested and rotated, something his team-mate and close friend Ben Stokes believes is necessary.
“Woody, especially last game, showed how vital he is in these conditions with the reverse swing and extra pace,” said the all-rounder. “The ankle has been a setback for quite a while so if the best way to get as many games as possible out of him is to rest him from time to time, I think it’s probably the right call.”
His fellow quick Liam Plunkett and the spin-bowling all-rounder Samit Patel will contest one place in Wood’s absence, with a decision to be made by the management closer to the match as they assess the nature of the pitch in Sharjah. Cook, who reported a tight groin in the second Test, will be fit to play.
The Nottinghamshire batsman James Taylor comes into the side for the wicketkeeper Jos Buttler, with Jonny Bairstow to take the gloves for the first time in a Test since playing in the final two matches of the 2013-14 Ashes whitewash in Australia.
Speaking about Buttler’s expected axe, after a run of 12 innings without a half-century, Stokes said: “He’s not a bloke to dwell on it. He’ll go away and work as hard as he always does. I’ve been in the same position and it’s not a nice place to be. Everything comes around and eventually you do find form.”
Stokes believes his own batting is developing on this current tour, which is his first experience of Test cricket in Asia. Normally an explosive striker of the ball, the 24-year-old left-hander is learning the art of survival on spinning pitches, as demonstrated by his 13 from 66 balls in the second innings in Dubai.
“It is a lot different to anywhere else I’ve played,” said Stokes. “You have to assess the situation you are in, whether it’s time to pick the scoring rate up or like the last innings, which was a completely different situation to what I’m used to playing.
“I’ve been working on what I know I’ll be facing when I come in out here, it will either be the reverse swing of Wahab Riaz or two spinners turning it big out of the rough. Hopefully the hard work will pay off in this Test and we can get a good result.”
The Sharjah Test could feature a final appearance for the Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq, with the 41-year-old again hinting at a preference to bow out from international cricket on a high, rather than wait for the tap on the shoulder, in his column for the Cricket Australia website.
Misbah will be without Imran Khan, the seamer having suffered a hand injury in practice on Friday afternoon that required stitches. The left-armer Rahat Ali or the spinner Bilal Asif could step in.
BREAKING NEWS: Fast bowler @MAWood33 is rested for 3rd Test vs Pakistan due to ongoing ankle condition #getwellsoon pic.twitter.com/f1eeNNDlJN
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) October 30, 2015
Asif will be free to make his Test debut for Pakistan on Sunday, if selected, after his action was cleared in International Cricket Council testing.
He was tested in Chennai, after his action was reported in the third one-day international during Pakistan’s short tour of Zimbabwe at the start of this month. He would have been free to play against England last week too, while the test results were awaited, but he was not required.
