England speedster Wood back bowling after injury scare

Mark Wood is back terrorising his England teammates, but whether the veteran pace ace will be unleashed for the Ashes opener in Perth remains up in the air.

Wood had a 30-minute spell of bowling in the nets on Tuesday in England's first training session at Perth Stadium.

The 35-year-old wore heavy bandaging on his leg but showed no sign of discomfort when bowling.

Wood sat out the early part of the session and looked proppy when walking around, before launching into full pace.

The 37-Test quick sent a scare through the England camp last week when he suffered hamstring tightness on the first day of their intra-squad warm-up game at Lilac Hill.

It was Wood's first match since knee surgery in March.

Although he was cleared by England, he didn't bowl again for the rest of the match.

Able to regularly clock speeds of more than 150kph, Wood's durability has always been his biggest issue.

But any presence of Wood in the series is sure to be a concern for Australia's top-order, and even England's batters have been left on edge knowing they will have to face Wood in the nets.

"He was quick enough, I can tell you that from facing him," England wicketkeeper Jamie Smith said on Tuesday.

"I always seem to be stuffed on the board facing him.

"I faced 'Joff' (Jofra Archer) at Lilac Hill the other day, and Wood this week.

"I know you've got guys all bowling 90 miles an hour, but there's some that you're just desperate to avoid, and I think Woody is definitely one of them here with the reputation of the nets. 

"He's bowling very good pace, and it's obviously great preparation for what we've got in store here."

If Wood is fit, England will consider pairing him with fellow speedster Archer for the first time against Australia at Test level.

Gus Atkinson is expected to play as another England quick, while Josh Tongue and Brydon Carse could be fighting it out for another spot.

Matthew Potts is another paceman in England's squad but isn't expected to be considered for the first Test of the series.

A whopping 17 wickets fell on the opening day of the Test between Australia and India in Perth last summer.

The wicket at Perth Stadium still had an ominous green tinge to it on Tuesday – three days out from the first Test.

Pacemen from both sides are likely licking their lips, and Tongue is confident England boast the bowling attack to take 20 wickets, no matter what type of pitches are dished up during the Ashes. 

"I feel our bowling group have a good chance of getting 20 wickets in the game," Tongue said.

2025-26 NRMA Insurance Men's Ashes

First Test: November 21-25, Perth Stadium, 1:20pm AEDT

Second Test: December 4-8, The Gabba, Brisbane (D/N), 3pm AEDT

Third Test: December 17-21: Adelaide Oval, 10:30am AEDT

Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne, 10:30am AEDT

Fifth Test: January 4-8: SCG, Sydney, 10:30am AEDT

Australia squad (first Test only): Steve Smith (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster

England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Harry Brook (vc), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Josh Tongue, Mark Wood