Brendon McCullum hugged his new-look coaching team on the balcony moments after the final New Zealand wicket fell to complete a good week’s work for his England team.
McCullum needed this victory and deserved it too. He went some way to re-establishing his authority over England at Lord’s and the players responded with a comprehensive 115-run win over New Zealand to begin the post-Ashes rebuild.
“The temperature’s been a bit hot of late so it’s nice to get one in the win column,” McCullum said. “In a game that was on fast-forward, there was a lot to be really pleased with. The way we were able to keep our poise, execute our plans, show some smarts when required and withstand some pressure, because you don’t win many Test matches when you’re 110 for eight in the first innings.”
A line has not quite been drawn under the Ashes, but it is a start.
England’s selection was spot on – Shoaib Bashir did not bowl a ball but nobody foresaw such excessive seam bowling conditions – and they judged conditions better than they did in Australia. When the Test match was at a tipping point on Friday after their second innings collapse of four for one, a rerun of the Perth horror show was in the air, but they rebuilt and added another 99 to put the target out of New Zealand’s reach.
Jamie Smith’s swap with Ben Stokes in the batting order paid dividends; he had a good game with bat, guiding the second-innings fightback and was assured with the gloves too. Emilio Gay justified his selection with the top score (57) in the match in the most trying of conditions for an opening batsman and Josh Tongue continued his rise with five wickets in the Test. He is England’s trump card. He could have had more in this game and in his last five Tests he has taken 18 wickets at 20. England have some depth with their seamers and it would be harsh – and send the wrong message – to drop any of them for Jofra Archer at the Oval.
McCullum swallowed his pride to recall Ollie Robinson, who responded with career-best match figures of seven for 77. Gus Atkinson wrote his name on the honours board for the sixth time in three Lord’s Tests with a second innings five for 30 as all the seamers helped themselves to the sweeties on offer.
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026ENGLAND WIN BY 115 RUNS! 💪
Gus Atkinson wraps up the first Test and completes his five-wicket haul in the process! 5️⃣ pic.twitter.com/23Hlyn6VFp
The 150th Lord’s Test was not a classic. It lasted just 166 overs, not even two days’ full play. A wicket fell every 24.9 balls – the quickest since 1907 – as uneven bounce and extravagant seam movement off the pitch too easily breached defences. Not an over of spin was bowled for the first time in this country since 1988 and 24 out of 40 dismissals were bowled or leg before with batsmen reluctant to get forward to balls rearing up or keeping low.
Spectators went home with a 50 per cent refund on their tickets because fewer than 30 overs were bowled on Sunday and even though the tickets are covered by England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) insurance, the loss for food and drink sales is likely to run into the millions and this, along with the reputational damage, should force MCC to accelerate plans to revamp the square. It is an urgent problem now.
For England, substance rather than style mattered after the Ashes humbling. Flip the result and an England defeat would have piled pressure on the coach and immediately reopened the debate on McCullum keeping his job.
Presumably the Oval, venue for the second Test, will be flatter and more of an examination. Not an awful lot can be learnt about players from such a quick Test match, especially the batsmen, but on the whole England were savvier than in Australia at judging the state of the game and McCullum projected an image of being in charge, more so than at any other stage in his tenure.
There was visibly more coaching going on during the practice days and the soles of the coach’s feet were not seen once resting on the balcony railings. He was on the ball. He spoke publicly before and after the match – previously he would only do so in the event of a defeat or at the end of series – and there has been a welcome policy by the ECB to encourage him to explain his thinking and communicate better.
Stokes felt the week in Loughborough before the Test series was of a huge benefit and, although unsaid, was a chance to clear the air. England were drilled and ready. Compare that to a knockabout game at Lilac Hill before the Ashes.
New Zealand helped because they continue to freeze against the Bazballers and McCullum, their former captain. They have now lost seven out of nine against his team and threw away this game, dropping Harry Brook and Gay during their half centuries. Their techniques were picked apart easily by an England attack that benefitted from having Tim Southee, recently a Black Cap player, as bowling coach.
New Zealand managed just one fifty stand – between Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips for the seventh wicket on Sunday – and a top score of 44 in the match. England found a way to win without Joe Root scoring runs, New Zealand lean on Kane Williamson in the same way and could not make up for his 0 and 18.
Stokes was a bit tetchy before the game but a win lifted his mood. His most immediate problem is his batting. It is all over the place at the moment and scrapping for form against a very good New Zealand attack is a tough place to be.
With New Zealand 55 for five overnight chasing 254, it was just a matter of time and whether MCC would have to fork out 100 per cent refunds if fewer than 15 overs were bowled. New Zealand lasted 19 overs, bowled out for 138.
It took just seven balls for Tongue to strike first, another one keeping low to remove Tom Blundell leg before.
Conway and Phillips countered with a punchy stand, partly thanks to Brook dropping Conway at slip off Tongue.
Conway held his ground waiting for the TV verdict when he skewed a catch off Stokes to Jacob Bethell at gully but once he was out, the end came quickly. The final three wickets took six overs.
Atkinson finished it off with his fifth wicket, a milestone for a player who ended the Ashes injured and was uncertain of his place before this game. It was an important week for more than just the coach.
McCullum on Ollie Robinson
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[Did we learn anything new?] Yeah I think we did. We reconfirmed how good a bowler he is at this level. The relentless accuracy, particularly on this surface, the length he was operating from… he moves the ball so late and he does it at pace.
His skills were always gonna be successful on this pitch. You’ve still gotta execute, right, and he was tremendously nervous leading into the first innings with the ball. He was able to feel the fear and do it anyway.
He’s a very good tactician but he can also get in the fight and he was really good with the other bowlers. It was a wonderful comeback from him. He’s fitted back in nicely.
McCullum on Emilio Gay
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He’s been a big scorer in county cricket, and the key for us was to reinforce that you don’t need to do anything different. You do what you want to do, you play the style you want to play and that will give you the greatest opportunity. The language around that was really consistent and he was really comfortable and clear when he got to the start line.
Clearly he’s got a very well-rounded game – good defensive game, he can score all round the clock as well. That fifty-odd he got was worth a lot more.
He’s fitted in really well around the group. I listened to some of his media stuff and I thought he spoke brilliantly. He was calm, poised, respectful and you can really sense the enthusiasm.
He keeps things really simple and I’m sure he’s got many more Test fifties for England.
Brendon McCullum speaks to Sky Sports
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First of all it’s nice to win. That was a nice little change. The temperature’s been a bit hot of late so it’s nice to get one in the [win] column! The boys will certainly enjoy it.
In a game that was on fast-forward, there was a lot to be really pleased with. The way we were able to keep our poise; execute our plans; show some smarts when required; and withstand some pressure, because you don’t win many Test matches when you’re 110/8 in the first innings.
The conditions weren’t what either team expected. But they are what they are, you have to find ways to adapt and I thought the boys did a great job.
[On England’s approach with the bat] We need to be quite malleable depending on the surfaces we get. Nothing needs to be so binary to play one certain way. From a coach’s point of view, the conversations the boys had during the match were fantastic. The communication allowed us to be slightly more adaptable.
Clearly the issue on that pitch was the full and straight ball. Defensively we talked about straightening up your defensive clock to respect anything straight, but anything that had width we were trying to throw our hands at it, knowing it was gonna be a low-scoring game so you still need to keep ticking over the scoreboard.
I thought the guys were really brave in parts. By that I don’t mean running-down-the-wicket-and-swinging brave. There will be times when that is required, but [in this game] I mean brave as in, ‘This is a tricky surface. How are we able to manipulate our guard or where we stand on the crease to give the bowlers something different to think about.’
The communication was the best we’ve seen for a while and I was really proud of that.
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026"We need to be malleable depending on the surfaces we get!"
Brendan McCullum suggests a more 'refined' approach to Bazball on display against New Zealand 👀 pic.twitter.com/dRtGSgqKnR
Ben Stokes’ verdict
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Test cricket is tough, you’re never sure what you’ll be presented, and I thought the speed with which we identified the conditions and the way we thought we needed to play was a huge reason for the win.
[Was there a different approach?] I think we were just quicker… Conversations this week were very quick to happen. When you’ve got a lot of people in a dressing-room there can be a lot of ideas floating around. I think we all voiced them pretty well, and that’s where you get to a situation that you can go out there and be very clear as a team.
It was a wicket that presented challenges as a batting unit – but also as a bowling unit when you feel like you’re massively in the game. We were clear about our plans and we executed them probably as well as I’ve seen from an England bowling group since I’ve been captain.
[On Emilio Gay’s impressive debut] I said to him, ‘That’s at the top end of how tough it gets in Test cricket.’ The conditions he had to bat in, the pressure of the third innings... his runs were monumental in terms of getting us to a lead that we felt we could defend.
[On Ollie Robinson’s return] The skill that Ollie possesses has never been questioned, and it was very evident this week. The relentlessness of his length and line, his unbelievable ability to look like he’ll never miss where he wants to bowl... what an introduction back into the team. It’s been an emotional week for him. We know he’s incredibly competitive; once he gets over the white line he’s a different person, and that’s what we want to see going forward. He’s a phenomenal bowler and he led the attack brilliantly well along with Gus, who’s just Mr Lord’s isn’t he? He loves this place! As a bowling unit we were great; I just chipped in at the back end.
[When asked about his own batting form] Ah, look, when we’ve just won the first game of the summer, that’s all I’m concentrating on at the moment.
New Zealand captain Tom Latham’s reaction
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I thought the way we set the tone with the new ball on day one was outstanding. There were some extremely talented bowlers on both sides and they managed to exploit the conditions extremely well.
We had our opportunities throughout the Test but we weren’t able to capitalise on them. We weren’t able to get through that tricky phase on day one, and after that we weren’t able to form partnerships.
It’s important that we trust the work we’ve been putting in over the last couple of weeks and take confidence that things will be different at the Oval.
When it’s a low-scoring game, dropped catches can be really important. It’s certainly not from a lack of trying.
As a batter, you’re used to the ball moving sideways but when it goes up and down you don’t necessarily trust the surface. That makes things hard and you can get caught on the crease. If you look at a lot of the dismissals in the Test, I think guys were getting caught on the crease.
The player of the match is... Ollie Robinson
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There was a time I thought I’d never be back on the pitch for England, so to walk off the field with the lads after winning the first Test of the summer is an amazing feeling.
That’s probably the worst nerves I’ve had before a game. The day before, anxiety through the roof. I couldn’t feel my legs before the first over, but then after the first wicket I calmed down a bit. The Lord’s crowd were unbelievable.
I’ve never [taken a triple-wicket maiden] before. It felt so surreal. It’s one of the highlights of my career so far.
I feel like we bowled really well. We hit the stumps a lot as a group. Obviously the pitch went up and down towards the end and there was seam movement. Our plans were really clear which we stuck to, and we came out on the right side of the result.
I thought Emilio Gay played unbelievably on debut as well. He got us to a great score and gave us something to defend.
It was a really important week to be part of that seam group. Hopefully we can keep that going through the summer.
I know this is just the start - there’s a lot of hard to work to do. I have to put those yards in to make it’s a long career, and that there’s no let-up this time.
‘A game for the statisticians’
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That’s how Sky Sports’ Mike Atherton has just described this game, and he’s not wrong. Here are a few that come straight to mind:
- 15.42 Average runs per wicket in the match, the lowest in a men’s Test in England since 1958
- 996 Balls bowled in the entire match, making it the second shortest completed Test at Lord’s - and the shortest since 1888
- 0 Balls bowled by spinners
- 24 Wickets that fell either bowled or LBW, a record for Tests in England
- 7/77 Ollie Robinson’s match figures, the best of his Test career
- 57 The highest individual score of the match, made by the impressive debutant Emilio Gay
Gus Atkinson’s extraordinary Lord’s record
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- 3 Tests
- 150 runs at 30.00, one century
- 26 wickets at 9.50, four five-fors, one ten-for
England win by 115 runs
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Henry b Atkinson 0 You miss, I hit as Atkinson ends the New Zealand innings and the match. The ball crashes into Henry’s stumps as Atkinson seals his five-for. England complete victory in this first Test by 115 runs. Ben Stokes’ side celebrate winning the 150th Test at The Home of Cricket. FOW 138 all out
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026ENGLAND WIN BY 115 RUNS! 💪
Gus Atkinson wraps up the first Test and completes his five-wicket haul in the process! 5️⃣ pic.twitter.com/23Hlyn6VFp
OVER 40: NZ 138/9 (Henry 0 Phillips 44)
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We are in that weird phase where Phillips is farming the strike. There is nearly a comical run-out as Phillips thought he could get back for two through the covers but Phillips sensibly opts against the risk. Henry nearly ended up running two in total but gets back in time.
After four balls, the field comes up. He guides one past gully and the ball runs down to third man for four. Phillips was probably hoping that the ball came up short of the boundary.
Tongue bangs the final ball of the over in short but Phillips misses the pull shot. There are a few appeals for a caught behind but Stokes opts against a review.
OVER 39: NZ 134/9 (Henry 0 Phillips 40)
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Henry has six balls on the trot to negotiate from Atkinson and does so without too much concern.
OVER 38: NZ 134/9 (Henry 0 Phillips 40)
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The field is spread for Phillips, offering up the single but Phillips is not going to take that at the start of the over. From the third ball, Phillips finds a boundary. He absolutely blasts one through point and the ball races down the slope for four. That came right out of the middle of the bat. He then nearly gets another four down towards third man but Root makes a good diving stop on the boundary. New Zealand ended up not getting anything from that shot though. As Phillips did not take the single, the field now comes up.
Tongue then bangs it in short and Phillips goes after it. The pull shot goes fine and ends up going all the way for six. Tongue bowls the final ball of the over a way outside off and Phillips gets no bat on it so Henry will be on strike for the next over.
OVER 37: NZ 124/9 (Henry 0 Phillips 30)
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Matt Henry is the last man in for New Zealand and blocks the final ball of the over. He could have taken a single but Phillips wants the strike.
Wicket
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Jamieson c Duckett b Atkinson 6 Atkinson has his fourth wicket of the innings and England are one wicket away from victory. Jamieson cannot believe it as he clips it firmly but it is straight at Duckett at mid-wicket. FOW 124/9
OVER 36: NZ 120/8 (Jamieson 2 Phillips 30)
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Captain Stokes’ spell is over and Tongue is back into the attack, this time from the Nursery End. Tongue nearly manages to get one to go under Jamieson’s bat but the 6ft 8in New Zealander just gets the toe of the bat on it.
OVER 35: NZ 118/8 (Jamieson 1 Phillips 29)
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Kyle Jamieson is in and, based on how he played in the first innings, I suspect he is not going to go down without a fight and without blasting it. He is off the mark first ball with a single.
Wicket
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Smith c Smith b Atkinson 4 Nathan Smith comes and goes as he is caught by Jamie Smith. One ball after getting off the mark with a boundary, he nicks a good delivery in a good area from Atkinson and Smith takes a simple catch. England are now two wickets away from victory. FOW 116/8
A quietly terrific Test for Gus Atkinson, whose place in the side was not certain until the day before the game. His previous Lord’s Tests have not been quiet at all: 12-fer on debut, and a century against Sri Lanka. This time, he has barely missed his length.
Wicket
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Conway c Bethell b Stokes 41 A few balls after the 50 partnership is brought up, Nelson strikes! Conway attempts to flick into the legside but it takes a leading edge. Bethell takes a good low grab at gully and England break the partnership. FOW 111/7
OVER 33: NZ 105/6 (Conway 37 Phillips 26)
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Atkinson sends down a maiden over as we come towards the end of the first hour of play.
England still need four wickets to win whilst New Zealand require another 149 runs.
The clouds have just gone a bit higher, and there’s sun poking through. It’s no coincidence, then, that batting has become a bit easier. Overheads are very har to explain, but they definitely have an impact.
OVER 32: NZ 105/6 (Conway 37 Phillips 26)
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This has been a really testing over from Stokes, coming around the wicket from the Nursery End and using the slope to bring the ball back into Conway. This innings has been a bit of a slog for Conway but he has survived and is still there.
Just the one run from the over.
OVER 31: NZ 104/6 (Conway 36 Phillips 26)
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Tongue’s spell at the Pavilion End has come to an end and he will be replaced by Gus Atkinson. Conway welcomes Atkinson by driving him down the ground through mid-off for three. It was not the most convincing of shots as one hand came off the bat but Conway gets three for it.
Atkinson then gets one to rise up at Phillips and strikes him on the glove. Mainly when the ball has misbehaved it has kept low but this one has got up. You can hear Phillips say over the stump mic “Goodness gracious me!”.
Phillips is finding it much harder from the Pavilion End than the Nursery End.
MCC will be praying there aren’t any more lifters like the one from Gus Atkinson which gloved Glenn Phillips. The ball keeping low is bad enough but when it is snorting upwards, and physically dangerous, that is when a ban on a Test pitch is imposed.
OVER 30: NZ 101/6 (Conway 33 Phillips 26)
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Captain Ben Stokes has decided it is time for him to turn his arm over, replacing Robinson at the Nursery End. Phillips gets one on his pads and flicks away in front of square for four to bring up New Zealand’s 100. Phillips timed that brilliantly up the slope.
OVER 29: NZ 96/6 (Conway 32 Phillips 22)
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That is probably the most convincing shot Conway has played today. He plays a lovely on-drive past the stumps up towards the pavilion and comes through for three.
Phillips has appeared to be more comfortable facing Robinson from the Nursery End but has found it tough against Tongue nipping it back in from the Pavilion End.
Tongue strikes Phillips on the pads but Rod Tucker shakes his head. It is clearly going down leg with the slope yet England decide to review. Unsurprisingly, it is missing the leg stump and England lose their review. Stupid! What makes it even more ridiculousis that Tongue did not really appeal for it, which tells you everything when even the bowler does not think it is out.
OVER 28: NZ 92/6 (Conway 29 Phillips 21)
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Smith is still up to the stumps off Robinson for Conway but has now gone back when Phillips is on strike.
England require four more wickets to win whilst New Zealand need 162 more runs.
OVER 27: NZ 90/6 (Conway 28 Phillips 20)
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How has that missed the stumps? Tongue gets one to come back into Phillips and down the slope. It misses the inside edge but somehow does not smash into the off stump. The ball kept a bit low and moved a fair bit.
Later in the over, Phillips gets on top of the bounce and guides one into a gap through backward point. Stokes flicks it back just before the boundary rope and keeps it to two. I mentioned when he came in the danger Phillips could pose and he is already up to 20 from just 18 balls.
OVER 26: NZ 87/6 (Conway 27 Phillips 18)
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That is the shot of the day thus far. Robinson bowls a full delivery and Phillips tucks into it, drilling it through wide mid-off for four. You have to take advantage of scoring chances when they are presented to you on a pitch like this.
Phillips finishes the over off in style, smashing Robinson through the covers for an emphatic four. Ten runs come from that over.
OVER 25: NZ 77/6 (Conway 26 Phillips 9)
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Conway is digging and has managed to survive but is that enough to give New Zealand a shot at winning this game? Not really as at some point there will be a ball with his name on it. He opts to go after one outside his off stump and is fortunate that the outside edge goes through a gap in the gully region. You have to be in it to win it though as they say.
Drop catch! Conway plays a rather strange shot, thinking about going for a cut before trying to withdraw the bat. That is too late and the outside edge goes straight at Brook at second slip. It should be a simple catch but Brook spills it. Brook should be taking those, but then again New Zealand have dropped plenty of catches in this game as well, including off Brook a few times in the first innings.
Devon Conway has a great opportunity to carry his bat.
OVER 24: NZ 71/6 (Conway 20 Phillips 9)
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Robinson bowls a beauty to Phillips and finds the edge. It is a genuine edge but it falls just short of Root at first slip. Robinson then finds the edge of Phillips’ bat again, this time the inside edge, but it flies past the stumps and Smith up at the stumps, racing away for four. Those two balls were incredibly tricky to face and Phillips will be relieved just to have survived them.
Then, after being beaten a few times, Phillips finally finds the middle of the bat, punching through the covers for four, with the ball racing down the slope.
It’s great to see Jamie Smith standing up to the stumps when Ollie Robinson is bowling and looking accomplished. Ben Foakes, his Surrey teammate, would be proud.
OVER 23: NZ 63/6 (Conway 20 Phillips 1)
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Glenn Phillips is in at number eight and England will know the danger he will pose, even in tough batting conditions. Tongue bowls one close to Phillips’ hip but it goes down the legside and Smith cannot prevent the ball from racing away for four. There was a suspicion of the ball clipping Phillips’ glove but it came off his hip. A good decision from Rod Tucker to give four leg byes. Phillips then gets off the mark with a single.
Wicket
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Blundell LBW Tongue 4 Josh Tongue will start proceedings from the Pavilion End and gets a wicket with his fourth ball of the day. We have seen a number of deliveries over the last few days keep low and that is one of them. It nips back in down the slope and stays low, trapping Blundell on the crease. Rod Tucker’s finger goes up pretty quickly and sensibly Blundell decides not to review, already knowing his fate. He shakes his head as he walks off and any faint hope New Zealand have of chasing the total has taken another hit. FOW 58/6
We are now up to 23 dismissals bowled and lbw out of the first 36 wickets to fall in the match. Another that doesn’t get up massively. New Zealand need to give a bit back to England – at the moment they look like sitting ducks.
OVER 22: NZ 55/5 (Conway 19 Blundell 2)
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Once again, the conditions are in favour of the bowlers. Ollie Robinson was midway through an over when play was halted yesterday so he will start the day from the Nursery End, with Jamie Smith up to the stumps.
You would not believe it but the first ball is sent down early, before the clock turns to 11am. Absolute scenes!
Blundell blocks the first three balls of the day and it is a maiden over.
Plenty of action elsewhere
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I should add, there is heaps of other cricket today.
In the Championship, Surrey are playing cellar dwellers Hampshire at the Oval.
In the Blast, there are seven matches this afternoon.
And at Worcester, England Lions are playing South Africa A. The Lions have been in dismal form so far on this tour against much more experienced opponents.
Nearly ready for action
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Ben Stokes and his men are raring to get going, stood by the boundary rope with more than five minutes to go before the scheduled start. England go in search of the five remaining wickets to win this match. The five-minute bell is rung by former New Zealand bowler and current England bowling coach Tim Southee. Southee is one of a number of Kiwis in the England coaching staff along with the likes of Brendon McCullum and Jeetan Patel.
Plenty of optimism
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A far cry from the horrid winter England had:
I like a Lord’s Sunday crowd. Tickets are a bit easier to come by and very slightly cheaper, so there tend to be a few more families. Lots of optimism around as I walked through the North Gate, but it’s a tricky balance as a spectator: clearly they want England to win, but they also probably don’t want them to do it too quickly! The other option is for it to happen so quickly they get a refund, like all the folks who were here yesterday.
What of Ben Stokes’ batting?
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— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026"It's been a real decline... is it terminal?" 🤔
"He hasn't played enough cricket!" 🏏The Sky Sports pundits discuss Ben Stokes' batting form & future as England captain. pic.twitter.com/iHCZu7QMa5
Here are some numbers on Stokes’ batting:
Another insightful interview
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Yesterday Emilio Gay spoke really well to Sky Sports, which I would recommend to any young cricketer to watch, and this morning it is the turn of Josh Tongue, who has provided plenty of good insight into his run-up, release position and lengths he looks to bowl. Very engaging and good to see!
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026"I just want the stumps in play as much as I can!" 💥
Josh Tongue reveals how England's seamers have found the right lengths at Lord's this week 🤔 pic.twitter.com/c2iQJg1Y35
Session times for today
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Morning session: 11am-1.15pm
Afternoon session: 1.55pm-4.10pm
Evening session: 4.30pm-6.30pm
I would be very, very surprised if this match is still going on during the evening session.
Another former England player having his say on the Lord’s surface
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— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 7, 2026"Why do we have so much cricket here when the pitches aren't up to muster?" 😬
Mark Butcher discusses whether the pitch at Lord's should be dug up and replaced 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/QlUAvGlnd0
What about Bashir?
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The Derbyshire spinner has yet to bowl a single ball in this Test and the chances are he will end the game without bowling an over. England gave themselves all the way up until the toss to decide to go with Bashir or Sonny Baker but opted for the former. Does Bashir play in the next Test at The Oval in just over a week or could they give a debut to Baker? The week coming appears to be quite mild weather-wise but from around a week’s time it is set to get much warmer and it could be a hot Test in London for match two of the series so a spinner will probably be more handy.
Michael Vaughan: The Lord’s pitch is a shocker – MCC must dig up the square
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It has been a great occasion for the 150th Test at Lord’s this week and so special to have the longest format back after a long wait.
Sadly the Lord’s pitch has been a shocker. We haven’t had a pitch like this in England for a long time. I’m racking my brains as to when. There was one at Edgbaston in 2000 against the West Indies, where the ball was spitting off a length, but that’s a long time ago. I don’t recall many others.
It has been up and down, with inconsistent bounce from the very first ball. There has been lavish late seam movement, and the ball far too dominant. I have actually felt sorry for the batsmen, and glad that I didn’t play on many pitches like this.
No more rain!
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Much better weather in London today, with no forecast I’ve seen predicting rain. Should be cloudy all day, making New Zealand’s job even harder.
Can England get across the line?
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England will press for victory on day four of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s, knowing they are five wickets away from going 1-0 up in the three-match series. Not even 10 overs were possible at Lord’s yesterday on a very stop-start day but England still managed to get two wickets closer to the win as New Zealand finished on 55/5 in pursuit of 254 to win the Test. Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell were the two men to fall for the tourists yesterday, with Ollie Robinson taking both of those wickets to take his tally in the Test to seven wickets, an impressive number on his return to the England team after more than two years in exile.
The discussion yesterday was dominated by the lack of play, brought into closer focus by the fact that lunch was being taken during the nicest part of the day, when the sun was shining. Did cricket shoot itself in the foot yesterday and look a bit silly? For those who had tickets for day three, at least they were entitled to 100 per cent refund on their tickets. Thus far, there have been just 147 overs in the match, in part down to the weather but also the bowler-friendly conditions.
New Zealand require an unlikely 199 further runs to win this Test. Devon Conway will resume on 19 not out and will be joined in the middle this morning by Tom Blundell, who is on two not out. There is still batting to come for New Zealand with the likes of Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith and Kyle Jamieson to come but considering the challenges of batting on this surface, another 199 runs seems a very tall order.
Will England seal the victory in the 150th Test at The Home of Cricket? Play on day four at Lord’s gets under way at 11am, with the weather forecast much better today than it was yesterday so we should have a conclusion to the match today.