England cricket team bowler Mark Wood, well-known for his sheer pace and pinpoint accuracy, is one of the fastest bowlers going around in world cricket at the moment.
Not only does Wood clock speeds of over 150 kmph consistently but he also troubles quality batters with his vicious bouncers.
Mark Wood recently made his franchise debut for Team Lucknow in the Indian T20 League 2023 and returned with the figures of 5/14 against Delhi in his first match for the side.
The English pacer was at his destructive best and rattled the stumps of Prithvi Shaw and Mitchell Marsh with speeds of around 147 kmph.
He also bowled a 151.2 kmph bullet to dismiss Indian legend MS Dhoni during his spell of 3/49 against Team Chennai in Lucknow’s second Indian T20 League 2023 game.
However, those were not the fastest balls ever bowled by Mark Wood or seen in the Indian T20 League. Wood has registered 152 kmph plus deliveries multiple times in his career and here’s a closer look at some of those lightning-quick balls.
Mark Wood’s fastest ball in international cricket
Bowling the seventh over of the first innings in Multan during the second Test of England’s 2022 Tour, Mark Wood hit the 150 kmph mark with ease. His fifth ball to Asad Shafique touched 156.6 kmph which is Mark Wood’s fastest ball in international cricket. Shafique had no choice but to bend backward and let the ball wheeze past his helmet. Mark Wood picked 6/105 across the two innings in the match and helped England win by 26 runs.
Mark Wood’s T20 World Cup 2022 record
Mark Wood was breathing fire at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. In one of England’s Super 12 games against New Zealand, Mark Wood bowled a 154.74kmph firebolt to Glenn Phillips in the final ball of the sixth over.
Glenn Phillips wasn’t able to react quickly to the line of the ball and got an inside edge that rolled away to the boundary. Mark Wood’s 154.74 kmph delivery was the fastest ball of the tournament. In fact, six of the top 10 deliveries - all above 153 kmph - at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 belonged to Mark Wood.
With an average speed of 149.02 kmph in his four-over spell against Afghanistan, Mark Wood also set a new record for the fastest spell in T20 cricket.
Mark Wood ICC Men’s ODI Cricket World Cup 2019 record
The 2022 T20 World Cup wasn’t the first time Mark Wood topped the speed charts in a global tournament. Mark Wood bowled the fastest ball of the 2019 ICC Men’s ODI Cricket World Cup in England with a 154 kmph delivery to Henry Nicholls in the final. Mark Wood picked up 1/49 in the final before England won the match in Super Over.
Photo credit: Alamy
