England pulled off a five–test series against New Zealand at Lord’s

England sealed a comfortable win over New Zealand by 115 runs on the fourth morning of the first Test at Lord’s to lead the three-match series 1-0. There was only so much you were ever going to get before the new ball, and Ben Stokes’ side wasted little time completing the job at hand after rain interruptions on Day 3 had delayed proceedings while Alzarri Joseph dismantled whatever stiffness remained in a historic outcome for Test No.150 played at this iconic venue.

After Day 3 ended with New Zealand on the back foot at 55 for 5 and needing another 199 to get to their target of a difficult looking 254, the Kiwis returned for Day 4. England bowlers clicked from the word go. Keen to chase down the target, however, Josh Tongue struck early on the second morning, trapping Tom Blundell lbw and mounting further pressure on their opponents. During the morning session however, Conway and Phillips provided some resistance with a fundamental partnership as England continued to dominate.

Captain Ben Stokes provided a vital breakthrough when dismissing Conway (41), and England were back in the game, with an assault on the lower order ahead. Gus Atkinson then stepped up, claiming three vital wickets and completing an impressive five-wicket haul. He dismissed Matt Henry for a duck and mopped up the tail leaving him as the primary performer of the second innings.

Phillips held firm for New Zealand though, finishing not out on 44 and at least attempting to play positively on a challenging batting strip. Only Mitchell Marsh was able to offer him any sort of assistance as England’s three-man pace arsenal bore little mercy on the variable bounce and movement available at Lord’s.

It was also a special win for Ollie Robinson who on his return to Test cricket scored 10 runs in the second innings and took six wickets across the match in an all-round display. His performance made Robinson the Player of the Match and was a key factor as England bounced back from recent humiliations to start their home summer with a bang.

After England took a 1-0 lead in the series, New Zealand needed to come back in the second Test or their hopes of leveling the contest could be all over.