England vs New Zealand: Five things we learned from first Test at Lord’s

06/07/2022

England began the reboot of their Test team with a bang at Lord’s, defeating New Zealand by five wickets in a game that saw momentum swing several times over four entertaining days.

Here we look at some of the takeaways.

Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s England will entertain

England’s new captain and coach pairing promised to deliver an exciting brand and first impressions suggest there is no reason to doubt them.

Root is ready to pay his debt

Joe Root leaned heavily on Stokes’ match-winning qualities during his five-year reign as skipper, repeatedly counting his blessings that he had the all-rounder as part of his team.

Now the roles are reversed, with Stokes at the helm and Root back in the ranks. His outstanding fourth-innings chase dispelled any concerns that the loss of title might lead to a dip in form and instead he vowed to return as many favours as he could for the new leader.

Class is permanent

When the two leading wicket-takers in English history were left out of the post-Ashes tour of the Caribbean, it looked as though it could bring the curtain down on two spectacular careers. But 39-year-old James Anderson and 35-year-old Stuart Broad refused to believe that time was up and found Stokes in agreement.

They both played important roles in this win, with Anderson sowing the seeds of the Kiwis’ first-innings collapse and Broad going on one of his trademark surges when the game was up for grabs on day three.

The very idea of pensioning the pair off already seems like a folly.

Top-order trouble remains

Every player was promised a blank sheet of paper to work from this summer, but there was something very familiar about the failure of the top three to provide a solid start.

Alex Lees has yet to make a significant score in his first eight innings with England, Zak Crawley’s eagerness to drive remains his biggest strength and costliest weakness and Ollie Pope’s risky promotion up the order endured a rocky first chapter.

Plenty have been tried and discarded in the same positions but England will not become an elite side until things begin to firm up at the head of the innings.

Two welcome Matts

A raft of injuries to fast bowlers opened the door to an unexpected debut for Durham’s Matthew Potts, who seized the opportunity with aplomb.

The in-form 23-year-old took seven wickets on his first international appearance and appears to have the heart and the skills to raise his game to the highest level.

England vs New Zealand: Five things we learned from first Test at Lord’s

Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum’s England will entertain

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Root is ready to pay his debt

Class is permanent

Top-order trouble remains

Two welcome Matts

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