Lord's Pitch 9 Is Out for Years After One Bad Test

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-10-15

Marylebone Cricket Club has ripped up Pitch 9 at Lord's. The reason? The ICC handed the famous ground its first-ever demerit point for an unsatisfactory Test surface. That one rating was enough to trigger a full rebuild, and the strip won't see international cricket again for two or three seasons. ### Why the ICC Marked the Lord's Test Pitch Unsatisfactory Match referee Andy Pycroft issued the rating after England beat New Zealand in the first Test in early June. His report pointed to excessive seam movement and unpredictable bounce. The numbers back it up: the surface produced 40 wickets in just 166 overs. Bowlers either bowled or trapped LBW 24 of those batters. Several deliveries stayed low, including the one that dismissed Jacob Bethell on the second day. When a pitch behaves like that, batters never really settle in. Pitch 9 is one of five central strips used for international matches at Lord's. Before this Test, the ground had never received a demerit point. So this stings a little. ### MCC Starts Rebuilding and Rethinks Pitch Preparation MCC chair Mark Nicholas drew up a seven-point action plan right after the match. Rob Lynch, the club's director of cricket and operations, and the ground staff have since brought in outside experts and commissioned data analysis. The review covers the whole square, not just the one strip. Work on Pitch 9 began earlier this month. Nicholas emailed members on Wednesday, saying the project would "ensure that the club prepares pitches worthy of the ground's reputation." He also warned members to brace for scheduling headaches over the next few years. According to Cricinfo, Lord's may build in a longer lead-in period before major events like Ashes Tests. That gives ground staff more time to prepare surfaces properly. Some smaller recreational fixtures could shift to Sir Paul Getty's Ground at Wormsley, which MCC plans to use as a partner venue after a pilot programme this summer. Nothing is confirmed yet. ### Hybrid and Drop-In Pitches Are Part of the Long Game MCC is betting on two solutions: hybrid pitches and permanent drop-in pitches. - A third hybrid strip, made of 95% natural turf and 5% synthetic fibre, goes in this spring. - The club is producing its first three drop-in trays. - The first tray moves to the main square in 2028 after time on the nursery ground. Nicholas said using these surfaces efficiently would ease the pressure created by losing Pitch 9. There's a catch, though. The ICC doesn't currently allow hybrid pitches in Test matches. Limited-overs internationals can use them if both teams and the ICC agree, and they're already common in English domestic cricket. Hybrid surfaces are believed to play more consistently and recover faster between matches. Unlike the seasonal drop-ins used at multi-purpose grounds in Australia, MCC will keep its trays in place long term. That's a different approach, and a more permanent one. ### What's Coming Up at Lord's Lord's stages two men's Tests a year under an agreement running until 2031. Next summer brings England against Bangladesh from May 28 to June 1, then England against Australia from June 30 to July 4. The ICC has picked The Oval, not Lord's, for the 2027 World Test Championship final. Not everything was doom and gloom this season. The other two Tests at Lord's, England women against India and England men against Pakistan, both earned satisfactory ratings. The four limited-overs internationals, which included three women's T20 World Cup matchdays and an England men's ODI against India, received very good ratings. So the square isn't broken. Pitch 9 just needs a fresh start, and MCC is making sure the next one lasts. > "The club prepares pitches worthy of the ground's reputation." — Mark Nicholas, MCC chair The takeaway is simple: one bad surface at a historic ground can force a serious rethink. Lord's is using that moment to modernize how it prepares pitches for years to come.