"Don't carry any baggage from here" - England bowler urges team to move on from series defeat against India ahead of Champions Trophy 2025

England fast bowler Mark Wood has emphasized that the team cannot afford to obsess over their horrid tour of India heading into the crucial Champions Trophy 2025. Jos Buttler and Co. have only won one match in the subcontinent out of seven outings so far across formats, and have already lost the ODI series with a game to spare.

The tour of India was meant to be a crucial phase in their preparation for the upcoming ICC event. With Brendon McCullum taking charge of the white-ball side for the first time, England crumbled against the Indian spinners to lose their fourth successive ODI series loss since the 2023 ODI World Cup.

Mark Wood urged England to not ponder over their recent results while preparing for and playing in the Champions Trophy. He also pointed out how the visitors cannot be demoralized by the series result in India as the illustrious team by Eoin Morgan also suffered a similar fate in the past. The World Cup-winning skipper toured India twice (in 2017 and 2021), only to lose 1-2 on both occasions.

“It has obviously been challenging but there’s been loads to learn and I feel like this experience will be good in the long-term going into the Champions Trophy. It’s very easy to look at this and say we’re not performing well because we’re losing games but the 2019 World Cup-winning team, we didn’t win very much here. This is as tough as it comes to win away," Mark Wood told the PA News Agency (via The Independent).

"When we go into the Champions Trophy, we play against other nations where we’re both in foreign conditions and things might change there. We’ve lost this series but when we get to the Champions Trophy, this cannot linger on us. We’ve got to get used to tournament cricket, it’s a totally different feeling, don’t carry any baggage from here," he added.

The third ODI between India and England is scheduled for Wednesday, February 12, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

"Results aside, we’re trying to learn from what India are doing well" - England pacer Mark Wood

The speedster admitted that England were trying to take a page out of India's book to thrive in subcontinent conditions. England skipper Jos Buttler had also cited Rohit Sharma's century in the second ODI as the ideal template they would like to replicate.

In both ODIs, England have begun well with the bat, but have lost their way in the middle overs. Batters being unable to convert their starts into something significant has been a plaguing problem for the team.

“Results aside, we’re trying to learn from what India are doing well. We’re always trying to learn in these conditions and how we can take this into the Champions Trophy,” Wood added.

England have been drawn in Group B of the 2025 Champions Trophy alongside Australia, South Africa, and Afghanistan. Their campaign begins on February 22, with a clash against their arch rivals at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.