Watch: Mark Wood assembles his perfect pacer
Wood was asked to choose five different attributes - the best run-up, leap, front leg position, delivery and aura.
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England pacer Mark Wood was asked to assemble his perfect fast bowler using five categories. The 34-year-old named some of the most iconic fast bowlers of all time to form his perfect pacer.
Wood was asked to choose five different attributes - the best run-up, leap, front leg position, delivery and aura. The Ashington-born chose five different pacers from different eras and assembled, what he felt was the best possible fast bowler in world cricket.
For fast bowlers, run-up becomes quite crucial, as a good run-up gives the bowler the necessary momentum and rhythm to bowl accurately. Wood picked legendary West Indies pacer Michael Holding in the ideal run-up category.
"Run up - Michael Holding. Gliding effortlessly, plenty of momentum to the crease, allowing him to then bowl at a decent speed. So for run up effortless, plenty of momentum and everything going in a straight line towards off stump," Wood said in an official ECB video.
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Another important facet for a fast bowler is the leap before releasing the ball. While some bowlers prefer to take big leaps before they release the ball, others opt against it. Wood named South African legend Alan Donald for the ideal leap.
"The leap would be for me, Alan Donald, you know, that upright coil that he had, It looked fast. It looked aggressive, Everything going towards the target. So if I had to pick someone with the perfect leap, it would be him," Wood explained.
Brett Lee was the next pick for Wood when it came to the bracing of the front leg, which helps the seamer to clock extreme speeds.
"The perfect braced front leg - Brett Lee. Absolute rocket. If you look at him side on, he always had that sort of long front leg that was braced perfectly, almost looked like he was going towards the batsman. And that that's a sight. I certainly wouldn't want to face him if I was batting," Wood said.
Run Up 🏃♂️ Leap 🚀 Aura 😬
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 19, 2024
Build your Perfect Fast Bowler ⚙@MAWood33, take it away... pic.twitter.com/sfXfxKfLs7
As far as wrist position and skill on the ball were concerned, Wood opted to go for South African star - Dale Steyn.
"The delivery itself. I'll be picking Dale Steyn, a guy who could swing it late and at high pace. Stumps knocked out of the ground. He was definitely someone that everyone hated is facing. So the delivery itself Dale Steyn," Wood said.
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The final attribute was - aura and Wood chose former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar, who is regarded as one of the fastest bowlers of all time.
"Aura- got to be Shoaib Akhtar. The fastest man, isn't it? He sprinted in from the boundary. I wouldn't want to be looking up anytime soon. I think I'd be, you know, getting shorter and shorter, as he was running in or further and further away from the stump. So just pure aura - and you know, you've got to have a nickname like Rawalpindi Express," concluded the England pacer.
Wood is himself one of the quickest pacers in modern-day cricket and can clock speeds in excess of 150 kph with consummate ease. Last month, he recorded the quickest over by an England seamer at home since records are being kept. Each of his deliveries in the over bowled to West Indies opener Mikyle Louis were bowled at over 150 kph. The fifth delivery was a whopping 156.26 kph, i.e. 97.1 mph.
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