Lord's digs up Pitch Nine after a short, bruising Test

Lord's has dug up Pitch Nine, one of the five central strips at the London ground used for its biggest matches. BBC Sport described the work as a sight nobody has seen at the ground for a generation. The pitch will be out of action until 2029 at the earliest, which takes one of Lord's main television pitches away for years.

The dig-up took five days. Workers laid a base layer of gravel across the 22-yard area, the strip between the stumps, and then added fresh soil on top. The old surface had earned its place in the headlines. Pitch Nine was the surface for England's first Test against New Zealand in June, where Jacob Bethell was bowled by a delivery that stayed low and shot along the ground.

That match was over quickly. ESPNcricinfo reported that all 40 wickets fell in 996 balls, the shortest completed Test at Lord's in almost 140 years. In a Test, both teams bat twice, so a short match usually means batters struggled. The ICC rated the pitch "unsatisfactory" and gave the ground a demerit point, a mark on its record.

England captain Ben Stokes said the surface did not benefit Test cricket. Former England captain Nasser Hussain called it substandard and said batting was "impossible" because the ball bounced unevenly. The MCC, which owns Lord's, apologised and admitted the pitch fell short of expectations. It said it would act quickly.

The club's answer is a wide overhaul. MCC chair Mark Nicholas wrote to members that the work under way is the most comprehensive review of the square and pitch preparation at Lord's in a generation. He also warned members to brace for the scheduling problems the new pitch plans will bring. Lord's already has two hybrid pitches, which blend grass with synthetic fibres for strength. A third will be added to the square in the spring. Hybrids are not currently allowed in Test cricket, so the Test strip has to be a natural one.

Lord's is also bringing in drop-in pitch trays for the Nursery Ground in the coming weeks. A drop-in is a prepared pitch grown in a tray and lowered into place, which lets a ground swap surfaces without digging up the whole square. Nicholas said drop-ins could be used as early as 2028.

For casual fans, the short version is simple. A pitch is the strip of ground where the bowler runs in and the batter stands, and its bounce and wear decide how a match unfolds. Lord's has taken a Test surface out of use and is rebuilding its process from the ground up. Whether the new strips produce better cricket will only show once they are in play.