ENG vs NZ: Ben Stokes says Lord’s pitch won’t do much for future of Test cricket
England captain Ben Stokes has expressed concern over the quality of the Lord’s pitch used in the opening Test against New Zealand, warning that such surfaces will not do much for the long-term future of Test cricket.
England secured victory by 115 runs in the series opener, but the pitchers dominated the game from start to finish. The contest lasted just 166 completed overs, making it the second shortest Test of the 150 played at Lord’s. In both innings, the teams combined for just 617 runs, highlighting the difficulties the batsmen faced throughout the match.
English vs. NZ, 1st test day 3: Highlighting | Scorecard
The surface offered considerable movement and uneven behaviour, resulting in a wicket falling every 25 deliveries. According to BBC statistics, this was the lowest balls-to-wicket ratio recorded in England since 1907. Of the 40 wickets taken in the match, 24 were either bowled or lbw, underscoring the challenges the pitch presented.
Despite leading England to victory, Stokes admitted the conditions raised wider questions about the health of the longest format at a time when Test cricket is increasingly competing for attention with franchise T20 leagues around the world.
“I get asked a lot about the future of Test cricket and what we need to do to make it grow,” Stokes said after the match.
“As someone who loves Test cricket, I can say one thing: is this something that will benefit Test cricket in the future? I don’t think so.”
While the match dragged into the fourth day, this was largely due to the rain that washed out much of Day 3. Stokes suggested that the game could have ended much sooner had the weather not intervened.
“If it wasn’t raining, the game would be over early. Is that where we want to end? You kind of want to find somewhere in the middle,” he said.
The England captain was quick to stress that his comments should not diminish the efforts of either side. England adapted better to the conditions and consistently found ways to score runs on a surface where batting looked increasingly difficult.
Stokes himself fell victim to the pitch’s unpredictability when he was dismissed for a three-ball duck by New Zealand seamer Nathan Smith in the second innings. Several batsmen from both teams looked disappointed at the move on offer, some visibly laughing after the dismissal as they tried to understand the behavior of the ball.
New Zealand captain Tom Latham echoed Stokes’ sentiment, urging his side to move on from the unusual conditions at Lord’s ahead of the second Test at The Oval on June 17.
“I think it’s important that we don’t get too caught up in this game,” Latham said. “We understand that we will go to the Oval and the conditions will be much better than they were here.
With the series now shifting to London for the second Test, both captains will be hoping for a more even match between bat and ball.
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Issued by:
Amar Panicker
Published on:
07 Jun 2026 21:24 IST