Stuart Broad claims four as England take charge against Ireland at Lord’s
Stuart Broad was closer to having his name added to the Lord’s roll of honor but all-rounder Curtis Campher kept England’s attack going in the afternoon session, leading Ireland to seventh on 162 at tea.
Broad edged through Ireland’s top order by three wickets in the first hour of the one-off Test, reducing the number of tourists to 64 for four, despite Paul Stirling’s entertaining 30-shot
When opener James McCollum fell behind just after lunch and went to 36 to give Broad a fourth, Ireland teetered at 98 for five but Campher held.
Jack Leach grabbed his second scalp and Matthew Potts took the first Test wicket since August, but Campher’s unbeaten 32 saw Ireland endure a second session.
England’s journey from their Kensington hotel to Lord’s had been delayed by five minutes due to Just Stop Oil protesters and the MCC introduced increased security measures to prevent any potential disruption during the four-day test.
With overcast conditions and a green wicket at the cricket home, it came as no surprise when Ben Stokes made Ireland bat after the throw won and Broad quickly set about putting his name back on the roll of honor.
In the absence of the rested duo of James Anderson and Ollie Robinson, the Nottinghamshire seaman produced a superb opening series of three to 14 from five overs.
While it wasn’t until the third round for Broad to break through, Peter Moor, who came off a Century in the warm-up game in Essex last weekend, was pinned down with 10 points up front in the left hand.
Broad’s next over added more drama as Ireland captain Andrew Balbirnie went out on a five-ball duck after advancing to the second slip where Zak Crawley made an excellent low-catch mental flight to the left.
Harry Tector followed his skipper back to the pavilion two balls later when he inexplicably shot straight at Potts when he slipped his leg, but Broad were denied a hat-trick opportunity when a LBW decision against Stirling was overturned on review, after the ball tracker showed he was missing his leg Blunt.
It allowed Stirling to lead a mini-back for Ireland but his brave 30’s contest was ended when his attempted swing threw off his glove and allowed Jonny Bairstow an easy catch from behind the stumps to help Leach win this summer.
Stirling had scored 45 points for the fourth wicket, with McCollum as the opener, making it to lunch unbeaten on 29, but his quest for a first Test 50 ended early in the afternoon.
Again, it was the third over of Broad’s game that tipped the scales, with McCollum coming out on top, only being able to slip past Joe Root on the first slip to secure a hard-fought 36 of 108 balls.
Warm applause greeted Ireland’s hundred with a single from Lorcan Tucker, but the wicketkeeper became Leach’s second victim when he was hit on his front pad and a review concluded the ball was clipped from the stump.
Campher and Andy McBrine tried to shift the momentum and steer the attack towards England, but Potts got the last laugh as the latter lagged behind on an 88.9mph delivery to Bairstow.
Debutant Josh Tongue continued to provide admirable support for the English attack, at times reaching a speed of 91mph, but Campher survived his sharp rebound and a concussion trial to reach the tee undefeated.
