AUS vs ENG: Mark Wood opens up about his availability for third test of Ashes 2025-26 in Adelaide

Mark Wood bowled only 11 overs in first AUS vs ENG test in Perth.

The second game of the Ashes 2025-26 is underway at the Gabba in Brisbane. It is a day-night test, and England are trailing by 0-1. Ben Stokes won the toss and decided to bat, going in with one change from the last game.

Speedster Mark Wood, who is known for his raw speed and ability to clock 150 kmph consistently, missed the day-night test due to injury. He was replaced by all-rounder Will Jacks. Wood has had an injury-prone history and had knee surgery during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 earlier this year.

He returned to cricket for the ongoing Ashes 2025-26, and England had high hopes that the pacer could feature in at least three of the five games. However, after the first match, Wood had a fitness issue. He had a below-par performance in Perth. Wood bowled 11 overs in the match and gave away 44 runs without a wicket.

AUS vs ENG: Mark Wood doubtful for the third Ashes 2025-26 test in Adelaide

The third test between Australia and England will be played at Adelaide Oval starting on December 17. The second test is scheduled to end on December 8, and there is a gap of 8 days between the two games. But Mark Wood might not be featured in the Adelaide test as well.

The pacer himself updated about his recovery and admitted that growing age has made the recovery slow. The 35-year-old said that his body is not coping with his ability to bowl at 90 mph or more consistently. In a discussion with Channel 7, during the tea break of the Gabba test, Wood remained optimistic about his availability for the third test.

He said, “I think there’s a chance there, but more realistically, it’s probably more Melbourne and then [Sydney] after that… I need to get out of this [brace] first to get moving around.” The 35-year-old also revealed that he played with painkiller injections to his knee in the first test.

Wood admitted that the aging body makes the recovery slow, but he is taking the recovery day-to-day. He added,

“I’ve had a couple of injections and am resting up, and slowly but surely, running will start soon, then back into bowling. It’s more mentally difficult than physically. You’ve got to try and build it back up and come back again, and that’s probably the more difficult thing.”

England have not won a single test in Australia since long, and Australia have been undefeated in the last four Ashes series. Ben Stokes and co. need a fit Mark Wood as he can be dangerous on Australian pitches.

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