England vs New Zealand 2021, 1st Test: England's Predicted Playing XI

England and New Zealand face off in the first of the two-Test matches at Lord’s. The Home of Cricket will start England’s summer with New Zealand and India playing back to back against the 2019 World Champions. They also play an Ashes series against Australia don under as some tough Test cricket awaits the hosts. In this article, we will write about England’s predicted playing XI for the first Test.

With a few of their key players missing, it will be difficult for England coach Chris Silverwood has got a tough job of picking the best possible XI from the available players. Meanwhile, Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes are not available due to injury while others like Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Jos Buttler, and Jonny Bairstow have all been rested for this tour after completing their mandatory quarantine since returning from the IPL.

England’s Predicted Playing XI

Dom Sibley

Right-handed opener Dom Sibley is likely to open the batting. He had a forgetful tour of India. He played all the four-Test matches but scored only 134 runs at a mere average of 16.75 and a strike rate lower than 40. He would like to make use of this opportunity to get back to form. 

Rory Burns

Sibley will be partnered by left-handed Rory Burns. He played just two matches against India scoring just 58 runs. Still relatively fresh in Test cricket, Burns is yet to cement his place in the Test squad. A failure in the upcoming Test series might seem like him being benched with enough choices for the team management to make. 

Joe Root

Though the England skipper injured himself at practice on Tuesday, he will be a part of the playing XI. In the absence of Buttler and Stokes, Root is the linchpin of the batting line-up. It is imperative that he scores run in batting-friendly conditions at Lord’s. The absence of Stokes and Buttler means that Root might bat a position higher than his normal number four position.

Zak Crawley

Crawley is the replacement for Stokes and will bat at number four in the line-up. He scored 67 runs in the two-Test matches that he played against India. He could not score runs as an opener. He will hope to get back amongst runs in the middle-order. He makes it at number four in England’s predicted playing XI.

Ollie Pope

Batting almost in a similar dogged fashion like former cricketer Ian Bell, Ollie Pope is expected to come out at number six. He forms an England middle-order that is relatively inexperienced batting skipper Joe Root. Pope also played all the four-Test matches against Inia playing a few crucial knocks in between.

Daniel Lawrence

He scored a defiant 46 in the first innings of the fourth Test match in Ahmedabad to keep England in the hunt. In Stokes’ absence, he will have to play a similar role in the batting line-up. Lawrence makes the top 6 of England’s predicted playing XI.

James Bracey

 He is a left-handed batsman, who also plays as a wicket-keeper. He made his first-class debut for Gloucestershire against Sussex in September 2016. An untimely and freakish injury to regular keeper Ben Foakes has enabled him an opportunity to represent England in Test cricket.

Stuart Broad

Broad slots in at eight because of his ability to support the mainstream batsmen. His contribution with the bat for England cricket has been invaluable. If needed he can hit the long ball too. However, his major role will be with the ball, and a face-off against Ross Taylor is on the cards.

Ollie Robinson

Robson is another England debutant part of the predicted playing XI. He made his first-class debut for England back in 2015 and has been a regular in the domestic circuit since then. He might get a much-awaited Test debut. He has played 63 first-class games picking up 279 wickets. 

Jack Leach

James Anderson