Injury-plagued Mark Wood's grim Ashes setback ahead of Gabba Test

England fast bowler Mark Wood will almost certainly be ruled out of the second Ashes Test after reporting soreness in the knee that required surgery in March and wiped him out of the entire home summer.

Wood was a notable absentee from England's nets session at Allan Border Field in Brisbane on Saturday and it's surfaced since that the 35-year-old is set to be sidelined for the day-night Gabba Test, starting on Thursday.

Right-arm paceman Josh Tongue will likely take Wood's spot if England decides to retain an all-out pace attack, though the visitors may choose to inject off-spinner Shoaib Bashir into the series.

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Ben Stokes' team is desperate to level the series at 1-1 in Brisbane after an Australian side inspired by Mitchell Starc and Travis Head defeated the tourists by eight wickets inside two days in Perth.

Wood recorded figures of 0-21 from eight overs and 0-23 from three overs in the west, in his first competitive match since February and his first Test since August 2024.

The right-arm quick regularly hit speeds in excess of 150 kilometres per hour in the first innings but was well down on pace in Australia's successful fourth-innings chase, as was fellow quick Jofra Archer.

Speaking on Fox Cricket during the Perth Test, Wood admitted he would "definitely not" play all five matches.

Tongue registered figures of 0-48 in the match between an England XI and an Australian Prime Minister's XI in Canberra on Saturday.

However, he took an England-high 19 wickets at 29.05 in the home Test series against India this year.

In 31 Tests, he has picked up 31 wickets at 30, including two five-fors.

Bashir has taken 68 wickets from 19 Tests at an average of only 39, but the finger spinner has claimed one six-for and three five-fors in Test cricket.

He took two five-fors on England's Test tour of India last year.

Speaking on Wide World of Sports' Outside the Rope ahead of the Ashes, Australian cricket legend Ian Chappell vouched for Bashir.

"There's definitely a place for him — certainly in Adelaide and Sydney, surely they'd be playing him," Chappell said.

"He can bowl and he's got a pretty good attack, so if Stokes is fit to bowl in all five Tests, it's gonna be hard work for Australia because Stokes is a bloody good bowler.

"They [England] have got a decent attack. If those guys are bowling well and the batsmen are under the hammer, you bring Bashir on.

"Bashir is good enough to get them out, as long as he can maintain a bit of control — he does vary a bit.

"Stokes uses him quite well, so I've got a bit of time for Bashir."