By Adam Ellis
England paceman Mark Wood will leave the IPL early to return to action for Durham in a bid to boost his hopes of playing Test cricket this summer.
Wood has found game time hard to come by with the Chennai Super Kings, currently on course for the IPL play-offs, having featured just once in a match against Mumbai Indians.
Falling out of favour with selectors after a sequence of ankle injuries, Wood was given a recall for England’s tour of New Zealand in February after proving his fitness in the ODIs. He claimed match figures of 2-114, while making 52 in the first innings with the bat.
Not willing to let his place in the team slip out of his grasp again, Wood posted in an Instagram post: “The decision has been made for me to return home to England to prepare for the English summer.
“Having worked so hard to get back into the test team, and because I’m not currently not in the CSK side, I am coming home to play for Durham to hopefully put my name in the hat for Test match selection.”
Test series against Pakistan and India await Joe Root’s men, with Lord’s hosting the first Test of the summer on May 24.
Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes and Moeen Ali are expected to return from their IPL duty once the tournament enters the knockout stages.
