Mark Wood has been ruled out of England’s Test trips to Pakistan and New Zealand after scans found a “bone stress injury of the right elbow”. Wood has missed the last two matches of the summer because of a thigh injury sustained during the first game of the series against Sri Lanka but had already been managing stiffness and discomfort in his arm, which he had noticed during July’s three-match series against West Indies.
The 34-year-old has struggled previously with injuries to the same elbow, which required an operation in 2022. He is hoping surgery will not be necessary this time, and that he will return to fitness in time for the white-ball tour of India in January and February, which will be their first with Brendon McCullum in charge of the limited-overs side, and for the Champions Trophy, currently scheduled to be played in Pakistan, that follows it.
