Woakes will be an Ashes certainty unless rivals step up

It is hard not to see everything that this England pace attack does through the prism of the Australia tour next year. It is not that the Test matches between now and then do not matter, because they are important in themselves and will provide their own stern tests, but since the retirements of Stuart Broad and James Anderson the line-up needs reconfiguring and the priority is to construct a group of quicks with the skills to win matches overseas.
It will require some delicate chemistry to find the best combination. Until that is achieved, each Test will feel like an audition and every injury scare — such as Mark Wood leaving the field late in the day in what seemed a largely precautionary move — carries extra significance.
That said, so far, so good for the new-ball pair of Gus Atkinson and Chris Woakes. It is worth remembering the principal reason for Anderson being ushered into the shadows, beyond the simple fact that he was 41 and Australia looked like a mission too far. He had lost his effectiveness with the new ball to such an extent that in 15 innings before his farewell appearance at Lord’s last month he captured only one wicket in all his opening spells combined.
He went through a similar spell in the summer of 2021 and winter of 2021-22 before his much-talked-about omission from the West Indies tour; then he took wickets in only one opening spell. Something had to be done.
There was a complicating factor, however: beyond Woakes, there was a shortage of bowlers experienced at taking the new ball. Wood does not like taking it and, as he has shown again this summer, he is more of a threat when the lacquer has come off. Atkinson had little experience of opening the bowling with Surrey.
It was a bold call, therefore, to promote Atkinson but one that has been fully justified. He has been a revelation. Not only has he taken a lot of wickets — 25 and counting, in four games — but he has provided genuine penetration alongside Woakes.
They took a little while to settle, but in the first ten overs of the second innings against West Indies at Edgbaston, and the first ten overs of the two innings here at Emirates Old Trafford, they have taken seven wickets between them — four to Woakes and three to Atkinson (the two wickets to fall between the 11th and 20th overs of those innings were both taken by Wood). This is precisely what you want from your opening bowlers.
How the next 18 months pan out for Woakes is the most intriguing question of all. At 35 he is the oldest man in the team and has such contrasting records at home (128 wickets at 21) and away (36 at 52) that you would expect him to soon follow Anderson through the exit.
He may be holding on to a place in the XI in part because England need someone of experience to nurse a younger generation forward, but this notion underplays the true extent of his contribution.
At a time when other candidates have forfeited their places through a lack of professionalism or fitness, Woakes displays an exemplary work ethic and offers runs at No 7 or No 8 in a way that few can match. Also, after the West Indies series, the head coach Brendon McCullum was at pains to single him out for praise for his ability to prise out wickets on flat surfaces with reverse-swing.
Woakes duly demonstrated his old-ball skills again with a superb spell late on this third day of 4-1-6-1, breaking the stubborn resistance of Angelo Mathews, who had batted almost 50 overs, and then narrowly failing to add the wickets of Milan Rathnayake and Kamindu Mendis, both narrowly saved from leg-before decisions by inside edges. A change of ball seven overs before he returned to the attack served him well.
“He’s a remarkable cricketer who probably hasn’t played as much as he could have in international cricket,” was McCullum’s verdict after Edgbaston.
It is hard at this distance to know what England’s pace attack in Australia will look like, but it is reasonable to expect that they will want a mix of high pace (from the likes of Wood and, if fit, Jofra Archer or Olly Stone), high fast-medium (Josh Tongue and Dillon Pennington, also if fit) and fast-medium skill (Woakes, Matthew Potts). England will be planning to deploy four seamers (including Ben Stokes) plus a spinner.
What England’s management would like to see is Woakes being pushed for the No 8 spot by the likes of Potts and Atkinson, both of whom have potential with the bat. Potts must first demonstrate that he is good enough to demand selection with the ball. He did not bowl well in the first innings here, probably striving too hard on his return to the side, but was much better in this second innings, only to suffer from two dropped catches.