PAK vs ENG: 'Will put national duty with England above franchise cricket,' says Mark Wood

Update: 2022-09-25 23:13 IST

Mark Wood

England fast bowler Mark Wood has vowed to put national duty above franchise cricket as he returns from injury.

After a six-month injury lay-off, Wood returned to action on Friday during England's third T20I against Pakistan in Karachi. He made his presence felt in his comeback as he clocked bowling at 97mph and helped England seal the game by 63 runs.

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Wood, who made his England debut in 2015, has been an injury-prone player and has missed many series because of the same. The 32-year-old pacer has now insisted that he is "all in with England" at the moment and is looking forward to playing Tests in Pakistan in the winter.

"One day we will have a conversation (about franchise cricket) but at the moment, I'm all in with England. For me, England will always come first and if I can fit anything else in, then great, but from an injury point of view, I think it's more a case of where I can get things in and where it makes sense. If they want me (for the Tests against Pakistan), I'll be ready to go," said Wood.

Wood finished with figures of 3 for 25 in his quota of four overs as England went 2-1 up in the T20I series.

The fast bowler also said he grew up watching Pakistan legends Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram, and values their opinion.

"They are guys I grew up watching. I look up to them a bit, so if they give you any praise, you know you must be doing something right. I value their opinion," Wood added.

The English fast bowler also credited Pakistan's ability to produce top international pacers, saying Pakistani pacers have a mystery about them that makes them deadly.

"It seems like this country produces a lot of fast bowlers and when you look at the pitches, their skill level has to be really high to get wickets and they've got that deadly pace as well. They have a mystery about them that makes them deadly," said Wood.

England are currently in Pakistan for the seven-match T20I series as a part of their preparation for the T20 World Cup, which is due to begin Down Under on Oct. 16. The final T20I is on Oct. 7 and after which, they'll fly directly to Australia for the marquee tournament.

Last year, England and Pakistan were among the semi-finalists in the T20 World Cup, but they ended up losing to New Zealand and Australia respectively.

After the T20 World Cup, England's Test side will fly down to Pakistan for a three-match Test series, starting from Dec. 1. The Tests will be played in Rawalpindi, Multan, and Karachi.

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