England’s Chris Woakes and his wife blessed with a baby girl

England all-rounder Chris Woakes became father to a baby girl on Thursday, October 1. The 31-year-old has been a busy man over the last few months, fulfilling his personal commitments as well as his duties for his national cricket team. Woakes last played in the three-match ODI series against Australia back in September where he scored 89 runs with a fifty and picked up six wickets.

Back in March, he even pulled out of the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), bearing in mind the importance of staying with his pregnant wife. Not only has Woakes flourished in his cricket career, he has all the reasons to cherish the developments in his personal life as well. In order to announce his fatherhood, he uploaded a heartfelt picture, showing the new-born baby’s little hand.

He captioned the adorable picture and wrote, “Evie Louise Woakes entered our world on Thursday 1st October 2020. Mum was amazing and Dad couldn’t be any prouder of his 3 girls. Laila is over the moon with her little sister x.”

Here’s the post:

Family had to come first: Chris Woakes

About the IPL, Woakes later said that he could have played in the tournament. He was part of the Delhi Capitals (DC) after being picked at INR 1.5 crores. However, he also had stated that playing for England remains his top-most priority.

“By no means do I feel like I’m finished in T20. I’d still love to play in the IPL. In hindsight, I probably didn’t need to pull out. I didn’t say it at the time but we’re expecting another baby in September and that added to the decision,” Woakes had said.

“My wife wasn’t well at home. The idea of being away from home for three months was going to be too much. Family had to come first. I want to play as much cricket as I can moving forward while looking after my body. My England career is No.1 but if opportunities come up, I’d still like to play in them,” he had said.

As far as the IPL was concerned, South Africa fast bowler Anrich Nortje replaced him in the Capitals’ squad and has done exceptionally. Woakes has played in two editions of the IPL, once each for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).