England fast bowler Mark Wood has shared an update on the knee injury that interrupted his return to Test cricket during the Ashes series, indicating that his rehabilitation remains gradual and carefully managed.
The 36-year-old acknowledged that progress has been slower than anticipated but confirmed that he has resumed light running and hopes to return to bowling in the nets in the coming stages of recovery.
Wood explained that the rehabilitation plan involves long monitoring cycles and specialist evaluations rather than daily assessment. On the BBC's Tailenders podcast, Wood said,
"It's real slow going with the stage I am at in my career. It's quite a fine balance, where if I push this too hard then that could be it. It's six-week blocks, it's not day by day, it's specialists and rescans every six weeks. It's been improving since what I got told had been an explosion in my knee in Australia. I've started running now and I'm hoping by the next block it's in a position where maybe I can start lightly bowling."
The England pacer has also begun considering activities beyond playing cricket during his recovery period, including media work and coaching development. He added,
“I've started thinking about other things, doing podcasts, doing my coaching badges. I've now started to try and think for the first time about what I should do if this doesn't go well."
Injury setbacks began during Champions Trophy before Ashes recurrence
Wood’s latest injury issue traces back to the ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan, where he initially sustained ligament damage to his left knee. The injury required surgery in early 2025 and ruled him out of the English summer season.
His appearance in the opening Test of the Ashes series in Perth marked his first Test match in roughly 15 months. However, the comeback proved brief. Wood bowled only 11 overs across two innings and did not take a wicket before experiencing significant discomfort in the same knee.
During the early phase of the tour, he relied on painkilling injections and wore a knee brace in an attempt to remain available for the remainder of the series. The swelling worsened, forcing him to miss the second Test in Brisbane.
Subsequent specialist scans confirmed that the injury had flared up more severely than expected, ruling him out of the rest of the Ashes campaign. Surrey fast bowler Matthew Fisher was later named as his replacement in the England squad.