England enjoys a five wicket finish in first Test against New Zealand

England once again relied on Joe Root and his ability to craft centuries in Test matches to steer the team past New Zealand at Lords. England ended the five-day test match in four days to register a quick five-wicket win with Root’s 115 not-out performance. Root also made history by reaching a milestone of 10,000 Test runs and became the second batter from England after Sir Alastair Cook was the first one to do so.

England started day four with a dominating stance they needed just 61 more runs to reach their target of 277 and the previous day’s 216-5 gave them a good start. Then Root and Ben Foakes made 120 runs on the unbeaten sixth-wicket stand to see the home side to a win. The three-match Test series would continue at Trent Bridge.