Mark Wood backed to break new ground and 100mph barrier in Test cricket

Ben Stokes has backed Mark Wood to become the first person to be clocked bowling in excess of 100mph in Test cricket, after the Durham paceman’s electrifying performance at Trent Bridge last week saw him hit a top speed of 97.1mph. Wood has also forced West Indies to change their team for the third Test that starts at Edgbaston on Friday, Kevin Sinclair having fractured a forearm in Nottingham trying to fend off a bouncer.

Australia’s Mitchell Starc currently holds the record for the fastest delivery in Test cricket, with a 99.66mph effort against New Zealand in 2015. Pakistan’s Shoaib Akhtar holds the all-format international record with a ball clocked at 100.2mph against England in 2003.

Stokes said Wood “has got it in the tank” to hit triple figures but added that “I don’t know if he’s actually too bothered about it”.

“He seems to be getting closer and closer to that [100mph mark], but I’m happy with what he’s doing now to be honest,” Stokes said. “Being able to sustain that pace is quite phenomenal. His average speed every time he plays a Test match is always above 90mph – it’s all fine and well trying to bowl one spell above 90 but every spell he bowls for England he’s clocking over 90mph.”

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamis Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir.

West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Mikyle Louis, Kirk McKenzie, Alick Athenaze, Kavem Hodge, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva (wk), Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Jayden Seales.

Umpires: Nitin Menon and Adrian Holdstock

Third umpire: Rod Tucker

Fourth umpire: Russell Warren

The average speed of Wood’s bowling across the entire match at Trent Bridge Test was 91.2mph, at which pace the ball travels the 22 yards from one end of the wicket to the other in 0.493 seconds. A 100mph delivery would provide a very marginal gain, shaving off another 0.043sec.

“You have to hold your hands up and celebrate what we have there,” Stokes said of Wood. “He’s got the heart of a lion. He runs in spell after spell, ball after ball. When be bowls the whole game changes. When his name is read out the whole crowd is up, then when the speeds are on the big screen everyone gets going. Woody is always looking up at the screen as well to see what he’s clocking. He knows he’s in the team to not only bowl skilfully, but also fast.”

England have named an unchanged team as they look to complete a 3-0 series win. West Indies will bring Gudakesh Motie back into the side in place of Sinclair and have put Akeem Jordan on standby in case Shamar Joseph fails to recover from a virus. Jordan was brought into the squad earlier this week to replace the injured Jeremiah Louis and though he has never played a Test he does have handy knowledge of local conditions, having this summer represented Aston Manor in the Warwickshire County League and West Bromwich Dartmouth in the Birmingham & ­District League.