Emilio Gay, Baker, Robinson named in England's XII for Lord's Test

For the first home Test against New Zealand on June 4 at Lord's, England has reduced their 15-man roster by three players. England had previously selected a team of 15 players, including the trio of Somerset batter James Rew, leg spinner Rehan Ahmed, and Surrey seamer Matthew Fisher, who have all been left out. Durham's top order batter Emilio Gay and Hampshire pacer Sonny Baker, both uncapped players, have made the final 12 and may make their debuts at the storied venue. Gay comes into the picture after England chose to drop opener Zak Crawley following a poor Ashes series. McCullum was effusive in his praise of the excitement surrounding the other potential debutant, Sonny Baker. "Sonny Baker is quick. When he does play, I think the country will really support him as a cricketer. He charges in and he leaves everything out there. "He's a complete roar. He is fascinating. He swings the ball both ways, and it's clear that he can reach 90 mph. He's an exciting proposition, and his time, if it's not in this Test, his time will come. "I'd expect him to do a good job if it is in this Test," McCullum continued. England also look set to welcome Shoaib Bashir back into their XI. The spinner broke his finger in the third Test against India in July, also at Lord's, and hasn't played since. After that, during the Ashes 2025-26, he warmed the benches. Brendon McCullum, England's head coach, anticipates that his lead spinner will play both roles in the opening match. "Bash, he has the ability to probably play more of a holding role in the first couple days here at Lord's," McCullum said. "Then he can move more into an attacking role as the game gets deeper and spin becomes more common." England have retained Ollie Robinson in the 12 because Brydon Carse is still recovering from a wrist injury and Jofra Archer is unavailable for this match due to IPL commitments. The fast bowler last represented England in a Test match in February 2024. McCullum kept his final XI plans a secret and waited until the very end to make any decisions based on the weather. There are showers expected all through the first Test. McCullum stated, "There is a little bit of danger around the conditions and the forecast over the next 48 hours." "We do want to be able to pivot if necessary, if the conditions turn out to be slightly different from what we anticipate," the statement reads. "We have a strong understanding of what we think will be our XI." Ben Stokes and wicketkeeper Jamie Smith have been swapped in England's XI, with Stokes moving up to No. 6 and England skipper moving down to No. 7. While Stokes has recently experienced difficult batting spells, averaging just 18 in the most recent Ashes, the 25-year-old Smith has a Test average of 44 from No. 6 and 38 from below. "We think it's quite a nice balance of trying to get Jamie Smith more time with the out and out batters, then if Stokesy finds himself operating with the tail he's got so much experience and he's batted in those positions frequently," McCullum said. "It's a small tactical shift. Everyone is on board with it, so we'll give it a shot and see where it takes us. England squad:Ben Stokes (C), Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Josh Tongue