Final over
MARK WOOD Durham and England bowler
On the Spot
Date of Birth: 11/01/1990 Marital Status: Single - girlfriend Sarah Former Clubs: Northumberland
The Last
Bat you bought/used? New Balance. I look for good grain and good balance. Last track listened to on Spotify? Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me Five-wicket haul? That’s an awesome question. I think it might’ve been in South Africa, a year ago. Injury? Broken ankle in September. I’m hoping to play again in March. It’s progressing well – I’m running now and doing weights, trying to get towards some sort of fitness so I can to bowl without much pain. Trophy you won? Second in a beauty contest in Monopoly. Last cricketing one was the one-day series for England against Pakistan in the summer.
The Jury’s Out
Tea or Coffee? I’m 100 per cent a tea man. I don’t need the extra energy from coffee – if I had that I’d be bouncing off the walls. Beans on toast or pasta? You can’t beat a spaghetti bolognese can you? Caribbean with the missus or Magaluf with the lads? I’ve got to pick the Caribbean. Over Magaluf? Come on man! Red or white wine? You’re asking a teetotal lad here! Which gets stains out? White? I’ll pick that one. 50-over, t20 or County Championship? County Championship. You get tested over a longer period of time, and if you do well in that sort of format – four-day, five-day cricket – you know that you can stand up against anyone.
Time added on
Who did you support as a boy? Wimbledon was my football team. My favourite colour was blue and I had a sticker book where one players looked like my dad, so I supported them. Then obviously Ashington CC and Ashington FC, who Harmy (Steve Harmison) manages. Best coach you have ever played with? Stevie Williams – ex-Ashington coach, first-team captain and local hero. He started me on the right path. The most nervous when next into bat? Other lads would say me – I’m a terrible watcher. I’ll tell you who’s not – Moeen Ali. Honestly, if he was any more relaxed he’d be horizontal. Sometimes I watch Broady bat and think: “He looks nervous today,” but in the dressing room he never seems it. Person to avoid after being dismissed Ben Stokes. You always have sympathy for your teammates, though. One rule you could change? Boundaries have to be at least 100 metres for T20! Three words to describe yourself? Northern, Northumbrian, energetic. Which TV pundit makes you cringe and which do you really listen to? I like Rob Key and Nasser Hussain – I think they’re really good – and you’ve got to have Beefy in there. He’s a legend, and now part of Durham so he’s got to be in there. Bumble’s funny, too. The one that makes me cringe has got to be big, bad Bob Willis on The Verdict. Do you have any superstitions? I haven’t really got any. Hobbies? Cinema – I’m more of an action or comedy man; I can’t abide the horrors – too scary. The forgotten sport of people watching has to be in there, too. Dinner party? The Rock – there’d be pancakes everywhere; Scooby Doo for clues if someone’s pinched my food; Scarlett Johansson to look at; James Bay to sing a song.
And finally:
Worst dressed? Alex Hales. He’s constantly forgetting stuff, so he’ll turn up in a hoody with his England tracksuit bottoms, or with jeans and an England tracksuit top on. Worst banter? Mark Stoneman. He could argue with himself in the mirror.