Chris Woakes : Veteran England seamer Chris Woakes might come out to bat after all on Day 5 of the fifth Test against India despite a serious shoulder injury on Monday. In a video shared by England cricket on their social media handle, the Warwickshire cricketer was seen wearing the jersey and donning a shoulder slinger.
Chris Woakes : The 36-year-old had been ruled out of the Oval Test due to a suspected shoulder dislocation while fielding on the opening day. He had bagged figures of 14-1-46-1 until that stage and didn’t bat in England’s first dig or bowl in their second innings. The management considered that the veteran bowler would undergo further tests after the series.
Chris Woakes : However, the dying moments of Day 4 saw Woakes with the England jersey.
Check out the video below:
Look who's in his whites in the dressing room 👀 pic.twitter.com/YQPaVhDYhv
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 3, 2025
Although the 36-year-old is a credible batter and notably has a Test hundred, he hasn’t showcased it in the ongoing series against India. Woakes made a useful 38 in the opening Test at Headingley, Leeds, but has managed only 64 runs in the series overall.
England will hope for Chris Woakes to come out to bat on the final day of the series
The home side will hope for the right-arm seamer to come out to bat on Day 5 on Monday. They are effectively seven wickets down despite their score reading 339/6 after Day 4. Hence, the Englishmen will be bowled out if they are nine down before reaching their target of 374.
The Test is delicately poised at the end of Day 4 as England need 35 more runs to take the series 3-1. The home side looked in pole position when they went to Tea, needing only 57 more for victory. The partnership of 195 between Harry Brook and Joe Root had left India dazed. However, the tourists made the ball talk after the tea break, as Prasidh Krishna dismissed Jacob Bethell (5) and Root (105) to leave England in a tricky position.
However, early stumps had to be called due to showers.
