PAK vs ENG | Backing up my speeds in upcoming games will be a big challenge, confesses Mark Wood

England have taken a 2-1 lead in the ongoing seven-match T20I series as they registered a 63-run win against Pakistan in the third T20I. England pacer Mark Wood made an impressive comeback to international cricket playing a crucial role in the team’s win. Wood troubled batters with his explosive pace in the game as he was clocking a speed of around 155 KPH in the game.

Wood has been away from the game for around seven months due to two elbow surgeries.  Reflecting on his return to international cricket, Wood stated that maintaining his express pace would be a challenge in the upcoming games. 

"You tend to be a bit fresh after seven months out. It's been a long time, and I felt very tired at the end. I know it's only a T20, but it's all the intensity of international cricket. But I'll rest up and be good again, hopefully in the future. The challenge now is obviously to back it up. Can I keep those speeds going?" Wood told Sky Sports.

Wood picked three wickets for 25 runs during his spell taking crucial wickets of Babar Azam, Haider Ali and Haris Rauf. Harry Brook contributed with unbeaten 81 runs for the visitors helping them post a total of 221/3. Wood’s brilliance with the ball in second innings restricted Pakistan to 158/8.

Wood has been included in the T20 World Cup squad and maintaining himself fit for the tournament might be a challenge for him. He has remarked that it will be a tough task for him to maintain a similar kind of consistency in upcoming games. 

"I've got plenty to work on. Today was a good day, but you know what it's like when you haven't played for a while, the adrenaline's flying, it's like you're making your debut all over again. The crowd was flying. So the challenge for me is the next one, can I repeat that?" he explained.