ENG vs NZ: England announce XI for Lord's Test, Stuart Broad and James Anderson included

England announced their playing XI ahead of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s. The first Test of the three-match series is set to commence from June 2 with a new captain and a new head coach taking charge for England. While Ben Stokes will take the field as the captain, 23-year-old Matthew Potts, the Durham seamer, will make his Test debut thereby becoming the 704^th Men’s capped player.

England will play New Zealand at Lord’s on Thursday, hoping to start afresh under captain Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum. Stokes, who was born in New Zealand but raised in England, took over as England’s Test captain after Joe Root stepped down.

Chris Silverwood’s termination following a 4-0 Ashes series loss in Australia bridged the way for McCullum’s appointment as England’s next Test coach, with the former New Zealand captain’s first match in command placing him against his national side. England would hope for McCullum to follow his aggressive style, which he pioneered when leading New Zealand.

Meanwhile, England are at the bottom of the World Test Championship points table, having won only one of their previous 17 Tests. The English cricketers went through a rough phase in the longest format of the game and would look to end their struggle with a victory over the reigning World Test Champions.

With the return of James Anderson and Stuart Broad into the side, Stokes will aim to end the losing streak and utilise the two experienced players to their best. Former skipper Joe Root would be expected to play more freely now that the captaincy pressure is off him. On the other hand, Kane Williamson-led New Zealand will also be geared up for the clash. Both the teams would look to win the series in order to grab some important points and improve their position in the WTC points table.

England’s Playing XI for 1st Test:

Zak Crawley, Alex Lees, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonathan Bairstow, Ben Stokes (C), Ben Foakes (WK), Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, James Anderson, Stuart Broad