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West Indies all-rounder Kavem Hodge, who was at the receiving end of England tearaway Mark Wood's display of sheer pace on Day 2 of the second Test, described the battle between the two as "brutal."
The sun-soaked crowd at Trent Bridge witnessed Wood scripting history in the second Test against the West Indies. He produced the fastest over bowled by an English bowler at home since the beginning of data recording for the same in 2006. Wood is known for making the opposition batters dance to his tune with his pace. The seasoned pacer weaponized his strongest attribute and asked questions from batters that they didn't have any answers for. Hodge faced Wood's 29 deliveries, and almost 24 of them were bowled short or short of a good length at a minimum of 90 mph, which became a challenging examination for the Caribbean batter. Hodge, who felt the brush of air on his face as the ball went past his helmet, described his battle with Wood as "brutal." "It was brutal. It's not every day you rock up and you face someone that's bowling more than 90 mph on every single ball. There was one point when I made a joke to him, I said: 'Hey, I have a wife and kids at home.' But I think that made the century a lot more satisfying. Test cricket is brutal, it's challenging, it's mentally draining. To experience that, facing guys like Mark Wood, it was tough, but it was satisfying," Hodge said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. While bowling the fastest over on English soil, Wood began his over at 93.9 mph, then bowled deliveries of 96.1 mph, 95.2 mph, 92.2 mph, 96.5 mph, and 95.2 mph for the rest of his over. Despite producing a spectacle for fans, Wood went wicketless and went off the field after he felt an issue with his hamstring. Hodge, featuring in his fourth Test, overcame the imposing challenge from Wood and went on to slam his maiden hundred in the format. He drove the ball past mid-off to find the fence and raised both his arms in the air to celebrate a memorable knock. He punched his fist in the air with jubilation with a beaming smile on his face. Hodge kissed the badge on his helmet and leapt into the arms of Jason Holder mid-pitch, indicating what the moment meant for him. "It was amazing. I think from 97 I blanked out... I was just trying my best to stay in the moment, and he bowled a big, booming inswinger, and everything was just a blur. Everything just happened in the moment. I told Jason I was still pinching myself after the celebration. I hadn't grasped it yet," Hodge told Sky Sports. His 175-run partnership with Alick Athanaze (82) laid the foundation for the West Indies to recreate their success in Gabba at Trent Bridge. West Indies ended the day with a score of 351/5, trailing by 65 runs. (ANI)
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