Chris Woakes criticises England players’ conduct and Rob Key’s public dismissal
On a rainy October afternoon at Edgbaston’s indoor nets, Chris Woakes, having just completed his 20th season as a professional cricketer, said “It’s unacceptable seeing the way some England players have acted” and criticised the public manner in which Rob Key announced he “isn’t in our plans, at all.” He spoke about his surreal final Test moments at the Oval and the end of his England career while promoting his new autobiography.
Woakes has won his third County Championship with Warwickshire, played 62 Tests for England taking 192 wickets and scoring 2,034 runs, and was part of two World Cup-winning squads. Across a long international career he worked under coaches from Andy Flower to Brendon McCullum and with captains Sir Alastair Cook, Eoin Morgan, Joe Root and Ben Stokes. His book, The Wizard, written with the Guardian’s Ali Martin, opens with his final Test appearance at the Oval where he walked out at No 11 with his left arm in a sling.
Recalling that Oval farewell, Woakes described dislocating his shoulder while fielding and batting one-handed in an attempt to help England reach the 17 runs needed for a 3-1 series win over India. “It was amazing to go out like that but, in another way, quite sad,” he said, adding that the pain and the feeling of leaving the team “handicapped: 10 v 11” was agonising. He admitted he was fearful before facing the bowling with one arm: “I don’t think I’ve ever been as nervous because I was going into the unknown,” and acknowledged Gus Atkinson’s contribution, saying they got the chase “down to seven because Gus Atkinson did fantastically well.”
Woakes said he accepted not being selected for last year’s Ashes tour and the termination of his England contract but was hurt by the way Key conveyed his omission. He quoted Rob Key saying “Chris Woakes isn’t in our plans,” Key said, “at all.” and wrote that “That final bit felt a bit cold” and “A bit shabby, really.” On contact with Key he said, “We’ve barely spoken since. He’s a busy man and moved on to different things. I’m sure at some point we’ll discuss it.”
Discussing wider problems in England cricket, Woakes referenced the summer’s turmoil: the Ashes defeat to Australia and nocturnal incidents involving Harry Brook and Ben Duckett that intensified pressure on McCullum and Stokes. He noted McCullum was relieved of his role while retaining control of the white-ball team, and recounted Stokes’s rapid retirement after a post-match incident following England’s win over New Zealand that involved Atkinson and members of the Saracens rugby academy. On captaincy he said, “Being Test captain does beat you up,” and reflected that Stokes had been desperate for Ashes success: “He was desperate for that Ashes series to be a winning one, and he probably deserved it. But the game owes you nothing and he didn’t get it quite right on that tour. I think that was the nail in the coffin.”
Woakes described his own relationship with alcohol as measured, noting he gave up drinking before the 2019 World Cup, but said drinking culture is widely discussed in cricket. “I’d like to say no, but drinking culture is mentioned a lot,” he said, adding that within some teams drinking becomes the norm while others are “almost teetotal.” He argued the professional game should be different but acknowledged the mental demands of long tours and said, “we’re brought up on alcohol to a certain extent.” On disciplinary measures he rejected strict curfews as a complete solution: “No. You need to give players some freedom and treat them like adults.”
On coaching and team style, Woakes expressed confidence in Stephen Fleming as Test coach and praised McCullum’s ability to free up players while admitting he should have been more vocal about tactical balance. He said there were times England “had the opposition pretty much by the balls and could have played a little more conservatively” and that the team “always went up the gears, but never really came back down.” Reflecting on his development under differing mentors, he recalled Flower being “ridiculously hard” and that “Flower was exactly what I needed at the start and McCullum was exactly what I needed at the back end of my career.”
Having enjoyed a strong county season, Woakes said he is open to playing another year for Warwickshire and has begun television work. He laughed at the idea of presenting an Ashes day at Trent Bridge, responding “Wow,” and spoke about Ben Stokes’s future: “When it comes to Ben, I genuinely think anything is possible. A large part of me says it won’t happen. I think he’s done. But if there’s one person that could talk Ben Stokes round to playing again, it would be Joe Root. If Joe was to say to Ben: ‘I want you back for one last series,’ it could happen. It would certainly be box office. It always is with Ben Stokes.”
