New Zealand captain Tom Latham won the toss and elected to field first in the opening Test against England at Lord’s on Thursday, taking advantage of the overcast conditions in the 150th Test match staged at the iconic venue.
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The visitors named a strong pace attack led by the returning Matt Henry, who is back to full fitness. New Zealand will be looking to make early inroads with the ball under favorable bowling conditions.
England, meanwhile, handed a Test debut to opening batter Emilio Gay following the omission of Zak Crawley after the team’s disappointing 4-1 Ashes series defeat in Australia.
The hosts also recalled seamer Ollie Robinson and off-spinner Shoaib Bashir for the series opener. Fast bowler Gus Atkinson was preferred over uncapped pacer Sonny Baker, who was included in the extended squad but did not make the final XI.
The Lord’s encounter is the first match of a three-Test series between the two sides.
England XI: Emilio Gay, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Gus Atkinson, Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.
New Zealand XI: Tom Latham (captain), Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wicketkeeper), Glenn Phillips, Nathan Smith, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Will O’Rourke.
