England seamer Chris Woakes has been ruled out of the remainder of the fifth and final Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against India after injuring his left shoulder on Day 1 at The Oval, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed on Friday.
In a statement, the ECB said: “Chris Woakes will continue to be monitored throughout the remainder of the Fifth Test at The Kia Oval, following a left shoulder injury sustained on day one of the match against India. At this stage, the injury has ruled him out of any further participation in the Test. A further assessment will be conducted at the conclusion of the series.”
The injury occurred during the 57th over of India’s first innings when Woakes, fielding at long-off, dived to stop a boundary hit by Karun Nair. He landed awkwardly on his left shoulder and remained on the ground clutching it before walking off with his arm in a makeshift sling.
Before leaving the field, Woakes had bowled 14 overs and returned figures of 1/46. His absence compounds England’s injury concerns, with captain Ben Stokes already ruled out of the series decider due to a shoulder injury.
Woakes, 35, has been a mainstay of England’s bowling attack this series and is one of only two seamers—alongside India’s Mohammed Siraj—to have featured in all five Tests. He has bowled 181 overs across the series, picking up 11 wickets at an average of 52.18.
With Woakes sidelined, England’s bowling attack is left short on experience. The rest of the seamers in the squad have a combined total of just 18 Test caps.