WOAKES’ TEST STATS
All-rounder will skip big-money Premier League to prolong his career & protect his mental health
CHRIS WOAKES has opened up on why he has put country before club in his bid to look after his mental health and prolong his England career.
Currently out in Sri Lanka and battling for a spot in the two upcoming Test matches, Woakes was expected to move straight on to India for an IPL stint with the Delhi Capitals.
Instead, he has turned his back on the £160,000 contract, preferring to have a break and recharge before the summer. “It just felt like I’ve been on a bit of a treadmill and I needed to get off for a breather,” he said.
“It was such a long winter and, prior to that, the build-up to the World Cup was quite intense, followed by a full Ashes series as well.
“You don’t put yourself into these things like the IPL intending to pull out.
“Physically, I feel pretty good. It’s just that, from a mental point of view, recharging the batteries at that time will be better for me, moving forward.
“Taking that break of six or so weeks and trying to refresh and recharge the batteries and go into an English summer gives me the best opportunity to hopefully play for England as long as possible.”
The 31-year-old is not alone in making decisions based upon his long-term health, his family and career.
Fellow Brummie, Moeen Ali has stepped away from England duty this winter to refresh mentally. The big difference is that Moeen (above) did not have the financial security that Woakes enjoys with a central contract. “It is impossible to do everything,” said Woakes. “Don’t get me wrong. I’ve been to IPL and it’s a great experience. It developed my game huge amounts with the white ball.
“But, when you get to a
Test matches only
Matches ............ 33 Matches .......... 33 Innings .............. 55 Innings ........... 62 Runs ................ 1177 Balls ............ 5714 High score ... 137no Runs ........... 2934 Average ....... 26.75 Wickets .......... 95 Strike rate...50.25 BBI ............... 6-17 100s ..................... 1 BBM ........... 11-102 50s ...................... 4 Average .... 30.88 Fours ................ 153 Economy ..... 3.08 Sixes ................... 3 Strike rate... 60.1 Catches .............. 16 5 Wickets ......... 3 certain age, you try to weigh up what’s best for you as a person and what’s best for your family.
“I’ve got a young family and want to spend as much time as possible with them.”
There has, arguably, never been a better time to be a cricketer with more chances than ever for a big pay-day. But, for top players in huge demand, there is only so much they can play. “The schedule has got busier and busier,” said Woakes.
“The IPL is lucrative and a great opportunity for guys to earn good money, develop as players and people.
“But, at the same time, that break can be really useful.”
UEFA CHAMPIONS LGE ROUND OF 16 SECOND LEG RB LEIPZIG (2) 3 TOTTENHAM (0)0 Sabitzer 10, 21 Att: 42,146 Forsberg 87
RB Leipzig win 4-0 on aggregate. VALENCIA (1) 3 ATALANTA (2) Gameiro 21, 51 Ilicic 3 (pen), Torres 67 43 (pen), 71, 82 Atalanta win 8-4 on aggregate.
SKY BET LEAGUE ONE BLACKPOOL (0) 1 TRANMERE (2) 2 Dewsbury-Hall 58 Ferrier 38 Vaughan 45 Att: 8,235 BRISTOL RVRS (1) 2 SUNDERLND (0)0 Clarke-Harris 39,
75 (pen)
BURTON ALB (1)
J Murphy 28, 65 2 BOLTON (2) Delaney 20 Hamilton 38 Att: 2,034
2 FLEETWOOD (1) 2 McKay 19 Souttar 55
Att: 16,779
P W D L F A Pts Coventry 34 18 13 3 48 30 67 Rotherham 35 18 8 9 61 38 62 Oxford Utd 35 17 9 9 61 37 60 Portsmouth 35 17 9 9 53 36 60 Fleetwood 35 16 12 7 51 38 60 Peterborough 35 17 8 10 68 40 59 Sunderland 36 16 11 9 48 32 59 Wycombe 34 17 8 9 45 40 59 Doncaster 34 15 9 10 51 33 54 Ipswich 36 14 10 12 46 36 52 Gillingham 35 12 15 8 42 34 51 Burton Albion 35 12 12 11 50 50 48 Blackpool 35 11 12 12 44 43 45 Bristol Rovers 35 12 9 14 38 49 45 Lincoln City 35 12 6 17 44 46 42 Shrewsbury 34 10 11 13 31 42 41 Accrington 35 10 10 15 47 53 40 MK Dons 35 10 7 18 36 47 37 Rochdale 34 10 6 18 39 57 36 AFC Wimbledon 35 8 11 16 39 52 35 Tranmere 34 8 8 18 36 60 32 Southend 35 4 7 24 39 85 19 Bolton 34 5 11 18 27 66 14
SKY BET LEAGUE TWO CARLISLE (2) 2 NEWPORT (0) Patrick 5 Att: 2,822 Kayode 33 (pen)
PORTSMTH (1) Raggett 36 Souttar 48 (og) 4 2 0
P W D L F A Pts Crewe 37 20 9 8 67 43 69 Swindon 36 21 6 9 62 39 69 Plymouth 37 20 8 9 61 39 68 Exeter 37 18 11 8 53 43 65 Cheltenham 36 17 13 6 52 27 64 Colchester 37 15 13 9 52 37 58 Northampton 37 17 7 13 54 40 58 Port Vale 37 14 15 8 50 44 57 Bradford 37 14 12 11 44 40 54 Salford City 37 13 11 13 49 46 50 Forest Green 36 13 10 13 43 40 49 Crawley Town 37 11 15 11 51 47 48 Grimsby 37 12 11 14 45 51 47 Walsall 36 13 8 15 40 49 47 Newport County 36 12 10 14 32 39 46 Cambridge 37 12 9 16 40 48 45 Leyton Orient 36 10 12 14 47 55 42 Carlisle 37 10 12 15 39 56 42 Oldham 37 9 14 14 44 57 41 Scunthorpe 37 10 10 17 44 56 40 Mansfield 36 9 11 16 48 55 38 Morecambe 37 7 11 19 35 60 32 Macclesfield 37 7 15 15 32 47 30 Stevenage 36 3 13 20 24 50 22 LADBROKES SCOTTISH— Ch’ship: Dundee 2 Ayr 0, Inverness CT 3 Queen of South 1, Partick 1 Dunfermline 1. League 1: Stranraer 0 Montrose 1. League 2: Elgin 3 Cowdenbeath 2, Stirling 1 Cove Rangers 7.
VANARAMA NATIONAL: Dag & Red 1 AFC Fylde 2, Notts County 3 Aldershot 1, Woking 1 Barnet 3. North: Kettering 0 Hereford FC 0, King’s Lynn Town 0 Bradford P A 1. WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL: Northern Ireland 1 Scotland 2.
3RD T20I, Greater Noida Ireland 142-8; Afghanistan 142-7. Ireland won super over. Afghanistan win series 2-1.
Paris-Nice, Stage 3 1 I Garcia (Spa) Bahrain McLaren 5h 49m 55s. Overall: 1 M Schachmann (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe 13-12-01.