Chris Wookes was named Player of the Series despite only playing three Ashes tests this summer. Photo: Getty Images/Stu Forster
Early this summer, Chris Wookes pulled out of the IPL in hopes of saving his Test career, but England found reasons to keep him out of the first three matches played at his favorite stadium.
< p> Before the first of the three, against Ireland, he gave a press conference, believing he had been chosen, only to find out that he had been overlooked. With him out of the first two Ashes matches, it seemed increasingly likely that the disastrous West Indies tour last March would be an unfortunate turning point in his Test career.
But by the last day of July, he became the first Compton-Miller medalist to play just three matches, challenging a mid-series quad break to finish with 19 wickets at an average of 18. A decade after his debut, Wookes first asserted his authority in the Ashes series. adding to an amazing biography that includes ODI and T20 World Cup winner medals.
Finally, at 34, the unsung hero made his moment in the sun in Test cricket. But, in signature style, the eyes were elsewhere, and the agenda was dominated by Stuart Broad's extraordinary farewell to cricket. Indeed, England turned to him — not for the first time — only when it was necessary; an injury to their No. 3, Ollie Pope, opened up the spot for him, strengthening the batting and compensating for Ben Stokes' lack of overs. '
A few weeks later, his relentless precision and movement through the air and out of the seam made him so indispensable that he played through a «tiny» — first class — quadruple gap in the Oval.
Wookes ended the Ashes series with 19 wickets at 18 years old. Photo: Getty Images/Stu Forster
«I was bowling the day before and didn't feel it,» he said. “I felt it the day before. I felt it at over 10 and was a little worried because it was the first inning and I was like, «Oh no, that could happen» but then I ended up hitting 25 in the first inning and it was gone. I had physical therapy throughout the week. It was all worth it to get through it.”
The last line applies not only to injury. Wookes could hardly believe the position in which he found himself after «three tumultuous weeks.» Even when he was recalled at Leeds, he was «worried» because his three county championship games earlier in the season for Warwickshire — hard yards, not IPL glamour — were weeks earlier and Stokes had him bowling on the hill at Headingley. who Wookes hates» to place the more glamorous bowlers on the other end.
«You don't always get what you want and what you're meant to be,» he said. “But I turned down the opportunity to go to the IPL for a number of reasons, one of which is the opportunity to be part of this series. I never thought I'd be left here.”
It's Chris Wakes AGAIN!! 🔥
Steve Smith passes away for 54 years pic.twitter.com/RTOEJDwDzj
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket), July 31, 2023
After the West Indies tour last year, that seemed even less likely, not least because he returned home with a knee injury that required major surgery. It is said that the careers of James Anderson and Stuart Broad were saved by not bowling in the dead fields of Antigua and Barbados; after replacing them, Wakes worked so hard that he almost finished.
Wookes said that after that tour of the West Indies, he «failed at all» to become the star of the series. “From the way my knee felt, I wasn’t sure I would play cricket again. If I could be at the end of this tour again… I never thought I'd be standing here now with what I've achieved. So yeah, it's incredible to think about.»
«I'm just proud of myself that I can continue»
Now Wakes can be sure, even at thirty-five, that his career is in for an Indian summer. It is not necessary that he actually go to India in January, which he remains modest about given his bad reputation abroad. But now that Broad is gone and James Anderson is now 41, Wokes can finally spend some time as England's attacking leader at home. He has played just 48 out of 127 Tests in the decade since his debut, but now only an injury can take him half a century.
“For me, this is the best in terms of Test cricket moments. ,» he said. «I'm just proud of myself that I can continue. The resilience you have to show to play at this level, and keep showing up day after day when the body hurts and the mind gets tired. Cooking guys. This schedule is grueling and when you have such a tight streak that means so much to so many people, you obviously want to be in it every second of the day Test cricket is no different than any other sport, it's really exhausting. where I made my debut 10 years ago.
«I want to play for England for as long as possible. Playing international cricket is the pinnacle. You want to be a part of days like today. You won't get it anywhere else.»
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