England have announced that Mark Wood has been ruled out of the remainder of their Test series against the West Indies and the upcoming Indian Premier League season with an elbow injury.
Wood featured in the first Test against the West Indies in Antigua, but barely bowled in the second innings after injuring his elbow. As a result, he was ruled out of the second Test and replaced in the squad by debutant Saqib Mahmood.
England had hoped the injury would only sideline him for a short while but, after undergoing scans in Barbados earlier this week, he has officially been ruled out of the final Test in Granada and the whole of the IPL. Wood is set to fly back to the UK next week to see a specialist and the 32-year-old will take an "indefinite break" from the sport.
In a statement, the ECB said: "Scan results have confirmed that Wood has a right elbow injury. He will return to the UK next week for a specialist opinion regarding the management of his injury. The Durham quick, who was due to play in the Indian Premier League, will now miss the tournament and will have an indefinite break from cricket until more information is determined from the elbow specialist."
Wood was bought for a whopping £735,000 by new IPL franchise Lucknow Supergiants in the recent auction. However, he has become the third English player to withdraw from the IPL in recent weeks, with Alex Hales and Jason Roy both pulling out due to 'bubble fatigue'.
England are yet to decide whether they will call up a replacement for Wood ahead of the final Test. Much will likely depend on the fitness of Ollie Robinson, who missed the first two Tests through injury, and Craig Overton, who missed the second Test with an illness.
All-time leading wicket takers James Anderson and Stuart Broad were controversially dropped for this tour and neither player is said to be listed as a reserve. Instead, Warwickshire's Liam Norwell is thought to be the likely replacement.
Wood's injury has left England lacking a genuine pace threat, with Jofra Archer and Olly Stone both yet to return from injuries. "It is sad to see Wood injured, certainly after backing up games in Australia and really showing what a world-class bowler he is," former England bowler Steven Finn told BT Sport .
"He is consistently above 90mph - that man England have longed for to be in the side. He is such a likeable character and we keep our fingers crossed it is nothing serious and that rest and rehab will get him back."
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