England’s match against New Zealand will be the 150th Test played at Lord’s, since the first ever back in 1884 when the hosts, led by Lord Harris with WG Grace opening the batting, thrashed Australia by an innings and five runs.
In the intervening 142 years there have been 143,786 runs, 4,627 wickets, 60 England wins and 51 draws at the Home of Cricket.
England appeared in 146 of the preceding 149 Tests, with Australia in each of the other three – beating South Africa by 10 wickets in 1912 and Pakistan by 150 runs in 2010, and losing last year’s World Test Championship final to South Africa by five wickets.
Joe Root tops the runs charts with 2,166 from 42 innings and is on the honours board the most times with eight centuries, while James Anderson has the most wickets with 123 and Ian Botham the most five-fors, on eight.
Here, Daily Mail Sport cricket correspondent Lawrence Booth picks the best 10 Tests from 142 years of history at Lord’s…
10. England v Australia, 2009
England won by 115 runs
For the first time since 1934, England beat Australia at Lord’s, thanks ultimately to a pulsating 10-over burst from Andrew Flintoff – his right knee in such a mess he had announced before the game that this series would be his last.
Having removed openers Simon Katich and Phillip Hughes on the fourth day, he wrapped up victory on the fifth morning by having Brad Haddin caught in the slips, then bowling Nathan Hauritz and Peter Siddle.
He celebrated his third and last Test five-for on one knee, arms spread, and barely a smile. England went on to regain the Ashes they had lost 5-0 under Flintoff’s captaincy two-and-a-half years earlier.
Andrew Flintoff celebrates completing his five-for as England beat Australia at Lord’s for the first time in 75 years
9. England v New Zealand, 2015
England won by 124 runs
The margin of victory does scant justice to the game’s quality and drama, with Ben Stokes front and centre.
He contributed 92 and 101, then removed Kane Williamson and, yes, Brendon McCullum with successive deliveries as New Zealand collapsed to 61 for five in their second innings. With time running out, Moeen Ali held the match-winning catch over his shoulder at third man to remove Trent Boult.
It all came against a backdrop of English change: Peter Moores had just been sacked as head coach for the second time, and Kevin Pietersen told by Andrew Strauss, the new managing director, that he was no longer wanted.
This feel-good Test put a spring in England’s step at the start of an Ashes-winning summer.
Ben Stokes dismisses Kane Williamson on day five to help set up a thrilling victory over New Zealand in 2015
8. England v Australia, 1972
Australia won by eight wickets
This was Bob Massie’s match. Playing his first Test, he swung the ball lavishly both ways to collect eight for 84 in England’s first innings and eight for 53 in the second – match figures of 16 for 137 were, at the time, the best by a debutant.
Whispers arose that the Australians had used lip balm on the ball, though without evidence. And then, almost as quickly, Massie vanished, playing only five more Tests and taking just 15 more wickets at 34 each.
The series finished 2–2, enough for England to retain the Ashes.
Bob Massie celebrates taking the wicket of Basil D’Oliveira – one of 16 he took in the match
| Bob Massie (Aus), 1972 | 16 for 137 v England |
| Hedley Verity (Eng), 1934 | 15 for 104 v Australia |
| Derek Underwood (Eng), 1974 | 13 for 71 v Pakistan |
| Roy Tattersall (Eng), 1951 | 12 for 101 v South Africa |
| Gus Atkinson (Eng), 2024 | 12 for 106 v West Indies |
7. England v India, 1990
England won by 247 runs
This game is usually remembered for Graham Gooch’s 333, plus his second-innings 123, giving him a match aggregate of 456 – still a Test record. But there was much else besides.
Ravi Shastri and Mohammad Azharuddin hit sparkling hundreds, and Kapil Dev spared India the follow-on with four successive sixes off Eddie Hemmings. Sachin Tendulkar then held one of the greatest catches seen at Lord’s, sprinting round to long-off to hold on one-handed and see off Allan Lamb.
The result – a comfortable England win – felt almost incidental.
Graham Gooch set a match aggregate record with 456 runs against India at Lord’s in 1990
6. England v West Indies, 1963
Match drawn
Sixty-two years before Chris Woakes walked out against India at The Oval with his left arm in a sling, Colin Cowdrey emerged for the game’s last over against West Indies with his left forearm in plaster after it was broken by Wes Hall.
With two balls to go, England – nine down – needed six for victory, so all four results were possible. Mercifully, Cowdrey was spared the need to bat left-handed when David Allen blocked Hall’s last two deliveries.
The dramatic denouement overshadowed all else, including a brutal 75-ball 70 from Ted Dexter and 11 wickets for Fred Trueman.
An aerial view of Lord’s during England’s thrilling draw with the West Indies in 1963
5. England v Australia, 1934
England won by an innings and 38 runs
In the 20th century, England beat Australia at Lord’s only once – thanks to Yorkshire left-arm spinner Hedley Verity.
After two days, the Australians were 192 for two in reply to England’s 440, but rest-day rain on the uncovered pitch gave Verity the encouragement he needed. He had already removed Don Bradman, caught and bowled for 36, on the second evening and, on the resumption, he took 14 of the remaining 18 wickets to finish with match figures of 15 for 104.
‘Verity’s length was impeccable,’ said Wisden. ‘He made the ball come back and lift so abruptly that most of the Australians were helpless.’
That included Bradman again, caught by wicketkeeper Les Ames, who later admitted ‘my heart was in my mouth’ as he circled under a skyer, with the words of captain Wally Hammond ringing in his ears: ‘Yours, Les.’
Hedley Verity took 42 wickets in seven Tests at Lord’s, four times as many as he took at any other ground. They came at an average of just 14.6
4. England v India, 2025
England won by 22 runs
The most recent Lord’s Test was right up there among the most nailbiting.
With the five-match series level at 1–1, both teams started with 387 including centuries for Joe Root and KL Rahul. England were then bowled out for 192, only to reduce India to 82 for seven.
But Ravindra Jadeja did not give up, adding 30 with Nitish Kumar Reddy, 35 with Jasprit Bumrah and 23 with Mohammed Siraj, who was unlucky to be bowled by Shoaib Bashir (nursing a broken finger) to give England a narrow win.
Shoaib Bashir celebrates the dramatic final wicket against India last year, with Mohammed Siraj out bowled when the ball rolled back onto his stumps
3. England v Australia, 1953
Match drawn
One of the most famous draws in Test history was fashioned on a tense final day by Willie Watson, who featured in England’s 1950 football World Cup squad, and Trevor Bailey, stubbornness personified.
When they joined forces at 73 for four, five hours remained to save the game. Watson, dropped the night before, lasted a total of five-and-three-quarter hours for 109, while Bailey contributed 71 in four-and-a-quarter.
According to John Arlott, he ‘played religiously forward’, a shot which Australia all-rounder Keith Miller later said haunted his dreams.
As their 163-run resistance grew, so did the crowd. Several weeks later, Len Hutton’s side were celebrating their first Ashes triumph for 20 years.
Australia’s Arthur Morris turns away a delivery from Alec Bedser for four – but it was Willie Watson and Trevor Bailey’s heroics for England that defined this Test
2. England v Pakistan, 1992
Pakistan won by two wickets
‘Rarely can a Test crowd have been through so many emotions in a single day’s play,’ said Wisden.
To cut a long story short, 17 wickets fell on the fourth day, with Pakistan at one stage 95 for eight in pursuit of 138 against a three-man attack: Ian Botham and Phil DeFreitas were both injured, leaving Devon Malcolm, Chris Lewis and leg-spinner Ian Salisbury to carry the load.
They almost pulled off a miracle, only for Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, after sharing 13 wickets, to put on 46.
The winning hit, said Wisden, ‘provoked some of the most emotional scenes ever seen at Lord’s’ as Pakistan’s players and coaching staff flooded the outfield.
Rashid Latif takes a wonderful catch at silly mid-off to dismiss Mike Gatting as Pakistan claim victory at Lord’s
Dominic Cork celebrates hitting the winning runs against the West Indies in 2000
1. England v West Indies, 2000
England won by two wickets
The 100th Test at Lord’s was a mad one, and remains unique: on the second day, spectators witnessed at least one ball from each of the four innings.
England – trailing 1-0 – had responded to being bowled out for 134 (and conceding a lead of 133), by dismissing West Indies for 54, with Andy Caddick taking five for 16. It left them needing 188 to square the series.
At 95 for one, they were on course; at 160 for eight, less so. But, amid knuckle-gnawing tension, Dominic Cork took the game by the scruff and with Darren Gough dragged England over the line.
They were soon celebrating a first series win against West Indies for 31 years.
