Injury-plagued England bowler Mark Wood has announced his retirement from international cricket – and is now ready to ‘focus on other things’.
Wood is likely to follow the likes of Stuart Broad and become a pundit, having realised he is unlikely to ever reach the heady heights of his pace career due to a knee injury.
The 36-year-old will be part of the Sky Sports commentary team for Tuesday’s one-day international between Harry Brook’s England white-ball team and Sri Lanka in Durham.
Wood made his international debut in limited-overs cricket in 2015, and hangs up his cricket boots having made 70 ODI appearances.
He was part of England’s 50-over World Cup-winning squad in 2019, and played 38 T20 internationals, taking nine wickets in four games as England won the World Cup in 2022.
Injury deprived Wood the chance of playing in the semi-final and final in 2022 – but he also featured in 38 Test matches, claiming 119 wickets.
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Ashes heartache in Australia
He has not pulled on an England shirt since an eight-wicket defeat to Australia in the first Test of the 2025/26 Ashes series.
And Wood admits the time is right to make way for England’s new wave of pace bowlers, with Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue having shone in the recent 3-0 Test series whitewash of Pakistan on home soil.
The pace bowler told Sky Sports: “I love playing cricket, I love playing for England, that’s been something I’ve felt really strongly about and proud to do. But I’ve had a lot of injuries.
“I’ve always found a way where I’ve believed I’d come back and had that resilience where I’m going to come back again, or I’ll be better, or I’ll prove somebody wrong again, but this time it’s just ground me down really.
The right time to retire
“I think it’s been a long time since Perth, that was in November 2025 my last game, so it’s been a year-and-a-half really where it’s just sort of ground me down to thinking: ‘I’m never going to get back to this level.’
“Plus the contract situation. My contract ends in September, and I think it just feels like the right time.
“I never really wanted to give up England, but the lads that are coming through are doing a fantastic job and the news should be about the lads going to get their contracts and I can just focus on other things.”
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