Michael Vaughan and Nasser Hussain rip apart Lord’s pitch for England–New Zealand Test series opener
Ollie Robinson celebrates with his teammates after Kane Williamson's wicket (Source: Getty Images)
Published - 06 Jun 2026, 09:55 AM• Read time - 2 mins
Michael Vaughan and Nasser Hussain have come down heavily on the Lord's surface dished out for the first Test of the English summer between England and New Zealand.
The wicket has emerged as a goldmine for the pace bowlers and nothing but a landmine for the batters, who are struggling to come to grips with it. The first day of the Test saw a total of 16 wickets take a tumble. Day 2 was no different as 17 wickets fell with England posting a target of 254 runs for the Kiwis.
New Zealand are already three down for 36 and need 218 more to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Hussain, a renowned pundit, criticised the up-and-down nature of the surface and the prodigious seam movement, which has made life miserable for the batters.
"Look at the very first delivery of the Test match, [which] rolled along the ground," Hussain said on Sky Sports. "All the way through, it has lacked pace and when it has got quicker, then suddenly it starts misbehaving up as well. I can tell you as a batter, nothing is worse [than] up-and-down bounce - and then you've got seam movement, and the slope.
"It means batting becomes impossible with the quality of fast bowling that is on show… This ground has got so much going for it. The attention to detail at this ground in the periphery is absolutely spot-on, but the bit in the middle is the most important bit and it's not good enough at the moment."
Vaughan's statement was in sync with his former English teammate as he called for a fair contest between bat and ball.
"It's not a test for the bowlers this week, because it's too easy… You want a fair balance. This isn't a fair balance between bat and ball," Vaughan told the BBC's Test Match Special.
"The MCC know that this pitch isn't up to standard… I actually feel sorry for the batters, having to come out at the home of cricket. This is the best place to play cricket, and I just feel very fortunate that I didn't have to bat on many pitches like this," he added.
