LONDON (AP) — The past is fiercely protected at Lord's Cricket Ground.
The Long Room, the slope of the field, the bell before play, dress codes and honors boards.
But inside this normally comforting time capsule, England will try to escape its recent past when it begins its first home test of the year against New Zealand on Thursday.
An occasion that should herald a fresh start is enveloped by a stench of dissatisfaction lingering from England's humiliating tour to Australia.
A team that was groomed for two years to end Australia's grip on the Ashes was crushed in 11 days before Christmas; tied for the quickest Ashes series defeat in 104 years. England's slack preparation and wrong tactical approach were aggravated by reports of excessive drinking under relentless local media scrutiny.
None of the leadership group paid a price. Director of cricket Rob Key, coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes survived a review of the Ashes tour. That didn't go down well with team supporters, and McCullum understood.
“You have got to handle a little bit of the backlash,” he told the BBC.
Fixes since the Ashes include reimposing a curfew and hiring more backroom staff, including fielding coach Sarah Taylor, the wicketkeeping great and first woman to coach an England men's test team.
Nothing banishes a putrid odor like the sweet smell of success, and England can take heart from its response to a similarly dire state in 2022 when McCullum, a former New Zealand captain, took charge.
England had lost the Ashes 4-0 in Australia and lost to the West Indies 1-0 in the Caribbean, prompting Joe Root to quit as captain. New Zealand arrived and Bazball was launched; England scored 279, 299 and 296 in consecutive second innings to sweep the series.
England has run out of patience with top-order batters Zac Crawley and Ollie Pope and replaced them with Durham opener Emilio Gay and Jacob Bethell, who scored his maiden century in January in the last Ashes test in Sydney. Gay has three hundreds in the ongoing County Championship. He'll be a dual international after playing three Twenty20s for Italy last year.
Ollie Robinson will try to be the confrontational new-ball bowler England consistently lacked in Australia during the Ashes. Robinson has an excellent record of 76 wickets at 23 in 20 tests but was dropped in 2024 because his fitness and attitude cost him trust. But the captaincy of Sussex this season has matured him, and he's been recalled while Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse are sidelined.
Meanwhile, New Zealand will unleash its twin peaks, Kyle Jamieson and Will O'Rourke, in a test for the first time in a full-strength pace attack.
Jamieson is 2.07 meters (6-foot-8) and O'Rourke is 1.97 meters (6-foot-4). They have played together for Canterbury and in one-day internationals but both are returning from back injuries. Jamieson's last test was in February 2024 after which O'Rourke emerged with nine wickets against South Africa on debut. But then O'Rourke broke down and hasn't played a test since July 2025.
The pair were held back from the warmup test against Ireland in Belfast last week, along with attack leader Matt Henry, to travel to England early and train with bowling coach Jacob Oram. Allrounder Nathan Smith took eight Irish wickets and looks set to be the fourth pacer.
White ball captain Mitchell Santner recovered quicker than expected from an April shoulder injury in the Indian Premier League and is vying for a spot in the middle order with fellow allrounder Glenn Phillips, fresh from helping Gujarat Titans reach the IPL final.
There's been media speculation that this tour may be Kane Williamson 's last for New Zealand. He opted out of his national contract in 2024 to freelance, and the 35-year-old batter's availability is series by series. The prospect of 14 tests over the next 12 months hasn't grabbed him even though he's 500-odd runs from the 10,000 milestone. He's admitted this will be his fifth and last test appearance at Lord's, where he's yet to taste victory.
“You only get a handful of opportunities to come to Lord's,” Williamson said. “The way they maintain the tradition is quite special. You notice those differences to all other grounds. Walking out to the pitch through the Long Room, bumping into a few members, and obviously the lunches are iconic. It is a special place to play.”
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
FILE -England coach Brendon McCullum hits the ball to England fielders during a practice session ahead of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Australia, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, File)
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s interior minister accused activists of hijacking a tragedy to stir up violence after police were attacked at a protest over the death of a teenager who was handcuffed as he lay dying while his killer stood nearby.
Police were pelted with chairs, cans, rocks and flares late Tuesday by some of the hundreds who attended a protest in the southern English coast city of Southampton, where Henry Nowak was killed in December. Two people were arrested and 11 officers and a police dog were injured, police said.
Nowak's death has triggered debates about policing and knife crime and has spurred claims by far-right activists and politicians that there is bias against white people in the justice system.
Nowak’s killer, Vickrum Digwa, who is Sikh, falsely claimed he was the victim of a racist assault by 18-year-old Nowak, who was white. When police officers arrived, they initially treated the wounded man as a suspect before noticing his injury and trying to resuscitate him.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday that the case had left “serious questions to answer, including how accusations of racism informed police thinking." But he called the street violence “disgraceful and completely unacceptable.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said Nowak's family had "made a powerful call to us all yesterday to not let Henry’s death be used to create further division, hatred or tension.
“There can be no justification for hijacking this tragedy to stir up violence and disorder. Those responsible can expect to face the full force of the law,” she said.
Digwa, 23, was convicted of murder and sentenced Monday to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years. The judge said he didn’t believe Nowak had said anything racist to his attacker.
After the sentencing, police released video showing officers dismissing Nowak when he told them he had been stabbed and repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct, which investigates allegations of police wrongdoing, is probing the actions of the officers from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary. The National Police Chiefs’ Council said it will review its anti-racism guidance in the wake of the killing.
After the sentencing hearing, the victim’s father, Mark Nowak, said the case was not about racism or religion, and that he wanted his son’s death to lead to safer streets and not to be used to create “further division, hatred or tension.”
But Nigel Farage, leader of the anti-immigration Reform UK party, said on Tuesday that it was an example of so-called two-tier policing — a popular far-right talking point that claims ethnic minorities are better treated than white people.
Farage urged people to respond to the incident with “pure cold rage,” and said, “white lives matter just as much as Black lives.” X owner Elon Musk and British far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, known as Tommy Robinson, have also expressed outrage at the crime.
Some politicians have called for Sikhs to be banned from carrying ceremonial knives, known as kirpans. The judge said Digwa had a small kirpan but also had an 8-inch (21-centimeter) sheathed Sikh dagger that was used as the weapon to kill Nowak.
Hampshire Police chief constable Alexis Boon said he understood the “desire for answers and accountability.”
“But that must be done in the right way and not used as an excuse to threaten and intimidate my officers and bring violence to our streets, causing fear and harm to those living and working in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight,” he said.
People protest outside the police station in Southampton, England, on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, one holding a photo of December 2025 stabbing victim Henry Nowak, 18. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)
People gather to protest outside Southampton police station, Southampton, England, Tuesday June 2, 2026, after the fatal stabbing of Henry Nowak, a British teenager who was handcuffed despite claiming he was the crime victim. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)
In this image taken from PA Video, police and protestors clash during a protest following the death of Henry Nowak, a 18-year-old student stabbed to death with a Sikh kirpan ceremonial by Vickrum Digwa, in Southampton, England, Tuesday June 2, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA via AP)
In this image taken from PA Video, police and protestors clash during a protest following the death of Henry Nowak, a 18-year-old student stabbed to death with a Sikh kirpan ceremonial by Vickrum Digwa, in Southampton, England, Tuesday June 2, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA via AP)
In this image taken from PA Video, police and protestors clash during a protest following the death of Henry Nowak, a 18-year-old student stabbed to death with a Sikh kirpan ceremonial by Vickrum Digwa, in Southampton, England, Tuesday June 2, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA via AP)
