Match overview
England beat India by 22 runs at Lord's on 10 July 2025 in one of the more unusual Test matches the ground has seen. Both sides were dismissed for exactly 387 in the first two innings, a coincidence that left the contest perfectly level at the halfway point. England then made 192 in their second innings, setting India 193 to win. It proved 22 runs too many. India were bowled out for 170, and Ben Stokes collected the Player of the Match award for his contribution across a closely contested five days. The result keeps England in the series picture against a side that had won three of the previous five meetings between the two teams.
The match carried significant series weight. India arrived at Lord's having beaten England by 6 runs at The Oval and by 336 runs at Edgbaston in 2025, and with an overall head-to-head record of 78 wins from 143 Tests to England's 52. England's win here, added to their 5-wicket victory at Headingley, means the series remains tightly contested going into its remaining fixtures.
Venue and conditions
Lord's has hosted 162 Test matches and the data from those games tells a consistent story. The average first-innings score across those fixtures is 227, which made both sides' 387 all the more striking. The famous slope from the Grandstand End to the Nursery End assists seam bowlers throughout a match, and the pitch tends to offer more to the bowling side as the game progresses into days four and five.
Chasing sides win just 34 per cent of the time at Lord's, one of the lower chase success rates of any major Test ground. England's decision to bat first after winning the toss was notable: teams winning the toss at Lord's choose to field 59 per cent of the time, so electing to bat went against the grain. Given the fourth-innings conditions that dismissed India for 170, the call looks well-judged in hindsight.
The powerplay and death-over data in this match are not applicable in the Test format, where overs do not carry those phase designations. What the venue record does show is that runs become progressively harder to score as a match wears on, a pattern that bore out in the final two innings: England managed 192 and India only 170, both well below the first-innings scores.
How to watch
Test cricket between England and India in the UK is broadcast on Sky Sports Cricket. Coverage is available via a Sky subscription, through the Sky Go app, or on a NOW TV day or month pass for those without a full Sky package. Sky typically begins its coverage around 10:30 BST on each day of a Test match in England.
BBC Test Match Special on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra provides live ball-by-ball commentary for every day of play. The programme is also available to stream through the BBC Sounds app and website, making it accessible to anyone in the UK without a television subscription.
Recent form
England came into this match having won four of their last five Tests. Three consecutive victories against West Indies preceded a 6-run defeat to India at The Oval, and England responded by winning at Headingley. That run of form reflects a settled and confident side, even if the margin of their Lord's win underlines how competitive India have been throughout this series.
India's recent form is similarly strong across the broader period. Four wins from their last five Tests, with victories over New Zealand twice and Australia as well as England at The Oval and Edgbaston, show a side capable of performing across different conditions and formats. Their 2025 series performances in England have been uneven, however: dominant at Edgbaston but narrow defeats at Headingley and now Lord's suggest they have not yet found the consistency required to put the series beyond England's reach.
