The steam-treated Lord’s pitch has become a genuine embarrasment | Andy Bull

Move to replant the playing surface by 2028 is latest effort to repair the embarrassment caused by its variable bounce

It was turn-around weather in London, the sort where your first fresh breath makes you think twice about stepping out for air and your second sends you back inside for another cuppa.

A great bank of wet grey cloud stretched overhead to the horizon and the idea that New Zealand’s remaining batters might take a run at scoring the 218 they still needed to win this first Test lasted as long as it took to check the weather apps, which showed room for a brief passage of play about midday.