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England defeated New Zealand by 115 runs in the first Test at Lord's to bag crucial ICC World Test Championship points. In a low-scoring contest dominated by fast bowlers, Ben Stokes' men outplayed the visitors across all four innings to secure a valuable victory and collect 12 WTC points.
The result has given England a boost in the ICC World Test Championship standings, while New Zealand bagged their second loss. Despite several impressive individual performances from the visitors, England's pace attack consistently produced match-winning spells to seal a convincing win and take a 1-0 lead in the series.
Ollie Robinson, Gus Atkinson star as England seal dominant win
After being bowled out for just 140 in their first innings, England bounced back brilliantly with the ball. Ollie Robinson produced one of his best spells in recent years, claiming 5/39 as New Zealand were bundled out for 113. The right-arm pacer removed Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell in a devastating spell that reduced New Zealand to 20/5.
England then posted 226 in their second innings, with Emilio Gay top-scoring with 57 on debut, while Jamie Smith contributed 39 and Ollie Robinson added a valuable 29 lower down the order. Chasing 254 for victory, New Zealand never recovered after losing captain Tom Latham for a duck in the opening over. Devon Conway fought hard for 41 and Glenn Phillips remained unbeaten on 44, but the visitors were eventually bowled out for 138. Gus Atkinson led the charge with 5/30, while Robinson and Josh Tongue chipped in with two wickets each.
New Zealand struggle despite bowling heroics from Jamieson and Smith
There were a few positives for New Zealand despite the defeat. Kyle Jamieson marked his Test return with a five-wicket haul in the first innings, finishing with 5/62 as England collapsed for 140. Nathan Smith then stepped up in the second innings and claimed outstanding figures of 6/70 to keep New Zealand in the contest.
However, New Zealand's batting unit failed to support their bowlers. The visitors were bowled out for 113 in the first innings after being reduced to 29/6, while the top order once again struggled in the fourth innings chase. Williamson managed just 18, Ravindra scored 8, and Mitchell was dismissed for a duck as England's seamers made full use of the Lord's conditions. The batting collapses ultimately proved costly and left New Zealand empty-handed despite some excellent bowling performances.
ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 Points Table After ENG vs NZ 1st Test
| Pos | Team | Played | Won | Lost | Draw | Ded | Points | PCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 87.50 |
| 2 | South Africa | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 75.00 |
| 3 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 66.67 |
| 4 | New Zealand | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 58.33 |
| 5 | Bangladesh | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 58.33 |
| 6 | India | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 48.15 |
| 7 | England | 11 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 50 | 37.88 |
| 8 | Pakistan | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 8.33 |
| 9 | West Indies | 8 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 4.17 |
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