Woakes is the only quick from the England side to feature in all five Tests of the series, and has bowled 181 overs, more than anyone else across the two teams, picking 11 wickets.
Photo: IANS
In a major blow for England, pace spearhead Chris Woakes has been ruled out of action for the remainder of the ongoing fifth and final Test against India at The Oval. Woakes is the only quick from the England side to feature in all five Tests of the series, and has bowled 181 overs, more than anyone else across the two teams, picking 11 wickets.
A statement from the England and Wales Cricket Board stated that Woakes, who sustained a nasty blow to the shoulder on Day 1 of the fifth Test, will play no further part in the Test match. A further assessment shall be made at the end of the series.
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“At this stage, the injury has ruled him out of any further participation in the Test,” the ECB statement read.
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Woakes picked up the injury while fielding in the 57th over of India’s first innings on the rain-affected opening day. He chased after the ball from mid-off and put in a dive to pull the ball back just inside the ropes. But he landed awkwardly and was seen holding his left shoulder in distress right away.
Earlier on Thursday, Woakes had struck early with the new ball to remove KL Rahul as India finished the day six wickets down with 204 runs on the scoreboard. On the second morning, the England pacers came up with an impressive show to dismiss the last four Indian wickets for the addition of mere 20 runs to the overnight score, with Karun Nair top-scoring for the visitors with a defiant 57.
Woakes’ absence leaves England with just three pace bowling options at their disposal – Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson and Jamie Overton in the second innings. Ahead of the final contest, England had rested Jofra Archer, while their skipper Ben Stokes was ruled out with a right shoulder injury.
Having scripted thrilling wins at Headingley and Lord’s, England hold a 2-1 advantage against the Shubhman Gill-led Indian side as the fiercely contested series for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy heads towards a conclusion.
Brief Scores:
India 224 (Karun Nair 57, B Sai Sudharsan 38, Washington Sundar 26; Gus Atkinson 5/33, Josh Tongue 3/57) vs England.
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