England began their post-Ashes rebuild with a convincing 115-run victory over New Zealand at Lord's, sealing the win on day four when Gus Atkinson finished with figures of 5-30. The triumph came after a winter of poor results and unwanted headlines, giving the team and supporters exactly the lift they needed.

Atkinson's decisive spell saw him dismiss Matt Henry to end New Zealand's second innings at 138, despite a promising 53-run stand between Glenn Phillips (44no) and Devon Conway (41). England's bowling attack proved too strong on a challenging surface that saw 33 wickets tumble across the opening two days.

Ollie Robinson marked his comeback from exile with seven wickets in the match, while debutant Emilio Gay top-scored with 57 from 95 balls. However, the match was overshadowed by criticism of the Lord's pitch, which Sky Sports' Nasser Hussain branded "substandard" for Test cricket.

The series continues at The Kia Oval from June 17, with England looking to build momentum while hoping for better batting surfaces ahead of the final Test at Trent Bridge.