Mark Wood has been cleared of a hamstring injury, easing England’s nerves just days before the first Ashes Test in Perth. The fast bowler left the field on Friday after feeling stiffness in his left hamstring during England’s warm-up match at Lilac Hill, prompting immediate scans.
The ECB later confirmed that precautionary checks revealed no damage, and Wood will continue to train as planned ahead of the November 21 opener. Despite the positive news, England remain cautious about selecting him, given his ongoing rehabilitation from the knee injury that kept him out of the entire home summer.
Wood bowled at lively pace on day one of the warm-up match before pulling out mid-session, raising fears of another setback. England still have strong fast-bowling depth with Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson, Matt Potts, Josh Tongue, and captain Ben Stokes in the squad.
Across the camp, Australia were dealt a major blow on Saturday as Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the opening Test with a hamstring injury, despite being initially cleared during last week’s Sheffield Shield fixture.
