'He provided an emotional lift': Nasser Hussain lauds England's comeback man in Leeds test

The Australian cricket team is playing against England in the third Ashes 2023 match at the Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds. Aussies finished at 116/4 at the end of the second and currently lead by 142 runs in the second innings. The hosts will look forward to wrapping up the Aussie innings as soon as possible and chasing the given target. The visitors, on the other hand, will aim to stretch their lead as much as possible and also seal the Ashes 2023 series. 

3 things you need to know 

• England were bundled for a score of 237 runs in their first innings 
• English skipper Ben Stokes scored 80 runs from 108 balls and was the highest score of the hosts in the first innings 
• The Australian cricket team currently lead the five-match series by 2-0 

Mark Wood helps England make an impressive comeback in the first innings 

English cricket team pacer Mark Wood helped his team make an impressive comeback in the first innings of the third Ashes 2023 Test. After reducing the visitors to 85/4 in the first innings, the hosts faced a counter-attack from the Aussie batsmen Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head. The duo added 155 runs in 168 balls for the fifth wicket and Marsh ended up scoring a century.

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Both the batsmen took the score from 85/4 to 240/4 and it looked like the Aussies will once again register yet another big score in the score in the first innings. However, Mitchell Marsh was removed by Stuart Broad for 118 runs off 118 balls, which also opened the gate for the comeback of the English cricket team. 

After Marsh's dismissal, the last five wickets fell for just 23 runs. It was English pacer Mark Wood who took the last four wickets out of five and ended the innings with figures of 5/34. Wood dismissed the likes of the likes of Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Todd Murphy. 

Nasser Hussain lauds Mark Wood's performance on his comeback

Former English cricket team captain Nasser Hussain lauded England's comeback man Mark Wood for his all-round performance in the third Ashes 2023 Test. After taking a five-wicket haul in the first innings, Wood played a batting cameo of 24 runs off 8 balls, which was important for the hosts at that stage. 

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Nasser Hussain, while speaking on Sky Sports Cricket's Ashes Podcast, shed light on Mark Wood's character. He also stated how his positive mindset has affected England's performance in the third Ashes 2023 Test so far. 

When you play two consecutive Tests in three days and have two heartbreaking defeats, you need someone like Wood. Not only his ability but also his character. It seems like he loves life and loves the game. England needed a mental and emotional lift and I think Wood provided that with his pace and six-hitting ability.

The English cricket team last won the Ashes in 2015 and would like to end their eight-year-old wait by defeating the Aussies in the 2023 series.