I never considered not going out to bat against India: Chris Woakes

England all-rounder Chris Woakes says not going out to bat due to a dislocated shoulder against India on the final day of the fifth Test was something he never considered, even as he wondered if his career was at risk when he suffered the injury.

Woakes came out with his left hand wrapped in a sling and tucked inside his sweater at the fall of the penultimate wicket with the fifth Test — which India won narrowly — tantalisingly placed.

Woakes said he felt it was his “duty to do it for everyone” and that he is still gutted that England lost the game.

“I don’t know what it is. You just know you’re part of something bigger. It’s not just you that you’re playing for out there,” Woakes, awaiting further scans, told The Guardian.

“It’s your team and your teammates, all the hard work and the sacrifices they put in, the people watching at home and in the ground. You just feel a duty to do it for everyone.” “I’m still gutted, devastated really, that we couldn’t get the fairytale. But I never considered not going out there, even if it had been 100 runs still to win or whatever,” he added.

Woakes said it felt nice to walk out to a standing ovation but does not read much into his heroic act.

“It was nice to have the ovation and some of the Indian players came over to show their respect. But any other player would have done the same. You couldn’t just call it off at nine wickets down,” he said.

Woakes revealed he began practising batting one-handed from the fourth day onwards with England assistant coach Marcus Trescothick.

“I defended one normally and, oh mate, it was agony,” he said.

“We soon worked out that a left-hander’s stance would shield the shoulder and at least allow me to sort of block with my top hand in control. I hit a few, missed a few, but it felt like the only way to survive,” he added.

The senior England player also revealed the exchanges he had with India skipper Shubman Gill and his deputy Rishabh Pant, who himself put on a similar act of bravery in the fourth Test when he batted with a broken foot.

“Shubman said something like: ‘That was incredibly brave,’” he said. “I told him: ‘You’ve had an unbelievable series, well played, and credit to your team’. Both sets of players had been through the mill in the series and deserve credit for the show we put on. Both teams wanted the win, of course, but it does kind of feel fair that it was drawn.”

“I saw Rishabh (Pant) had put an image of me on Instagram with a salute emoji, so I replied thanking him: ‘Appreciate the love and hope the foot is OK,’” etc.

Woakes added, “He then sent me a voice note saying: ‘I hope all is OK, good luck with the recovery and I hope we meet again out there some day’. I obviously said sorry for the broken foot.” Woakes, who did not get to face a ball, said running between the wickets was the toughest.

“The first one was the worst. All I had taken was codeine and it was just so sore. Instinct took over here – even with my arm strapped down I tried to run as you naturally do,” he said.

“I genuinely worried my shoulder had popped back out again, hence you saw me throw my helmet off, rip the glove off with my teeth, and check it was OK.” “It was bittersweet in the end. (A) part of me wondered what it might be like, to see if I could have defended the ball, seen out an over maybe, squeezed a run or carved a four.”

He continued, “But the other side of it was: ‘Thank God I didn’t face a 90mph bouncer, one-handed, facing the wrong way around’. I knew I was going to have to wear a few bouncers if I did get on strike.”

Woakes wondered if the injury was career-threatening right after his slide on the first day of the Test. “The outfield was wet from the rain, almost greasy, and my hand slipped as I landed and my full body weight went through my shoulder. I heard a pop and knew I was in trouble,” he said.

“The pain came on pretty quickly and my arm was just hanging there. It was grim and my thoughts were racing. ‘Is it game over? Is it career done?’ It was a horrible place to be,” he added.