Over the years, England has produced a fine line of pace bowlers with the likes of Bob Willis, Ian Botham, Darren Gough, Steve Harmison, Andrew Flintoff, but none better than the seaming pair of James Anderson and Stuart Broad in Test cricket.
In aggregate, the two have picked up over a 1000 Test wickets in tandem, making them one of the most feared seaming duo in the world.
Their abilities are amplified even more in the overcast, seaming and swinging conditions at home, especially with the Duke’s ball.
Therefore, it is up to the legendary Broad-Anderson duo to pass on the legacy to the next line of fast bowlers featuring Jofra Archer, Chris Woakes, and Mark Wood.
During a recent interaction, Broad revealed his one piece of advice to Wood, which might turn out to be career-changing for the fast bowler.
“Going back, Jimmy [Anderson] and I went to Potchefstroom on a bowler’s camp, [which was] the first time I ever met Woody,” Broad spoke about Wood on Sky Sports.
At first sight of Wood, both Broad and Anderson thought of his bowling run-up being too short, which causes extra stress on the body.
Also, the two talked about the possibility of Wood lengthening his run-up to take the stress of the body.
“He had this short, powerful run, and Jimmy and I actually sat down with him over dinner one night and talked about his views on potentially lengthening his run,” added Broad.
“The thing about a short run is that it puts a lot of pressure on your body because you’re having to really explode at the crease rather than carrying a bit more momentum with you that takes the stress off your body.”
In recent years, Wood was part of Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) successful 2018 IPL-winning campaign in their comeback, post their two-year hiatus from the league, although he did not feature in many games for the franchise.
Also, Wood was an integral part of the England team in their title-winning campaign in the 2019 ODI World Cup at home.
Wood is even making giant strides in the longest format of the game, through his raw pace and decisive line and lengths.
