Lords Cricket Ground will host their first ever women's test match between England and India on Friday

Lords will finally host their first women's test match on Friday, 10th July. The venue hosted the first men's test match in 1884 and now 142 years later, the England women's team will face the Indian women's team for a 4 day match.

“It just boggles my mind that it is just the first (women’s) Test match here at Lord’s,” said India coach Amol Muzumdar. “It is a great occasion, and we are looking forward to it.”

Just over 50 years have passed since England defeated Australia by eight wickets in a one-day international on August 4, 1976, marking the first women's match of any sort to take place at the storied London stadium.

“We’ve always known this has been on the calendar,” said England coach Charlotte Edwards. “A lot of our players have been doing Test match prep throughout the T20s, so we’re really looking forward to it,” added Edwards, England’s captain when they won the 2009 Women’s T20 World Cup final at Lord’s.

“It’s a historic Test match for us as a group and for the Indian team, and we can’t wait to play in front of a lot of people again over the next four days.”

In addition to a breakthrough, English batter Tammy Beaumont will be saying goodbye to international cricket in this match.

Since making her debut for England 17 years ago, Beaumont has made 260 appearances. In 2023, she became the first English woman to hit a double century in a Test match, scoring 208 against Australia at Trent Bridge.

“When I fell in love with playing cricket as a young girl, I barely knew that playing cricket for England was an option,” said Beaumont.

The 35-year-old, who will continue to play domestic cricket, added: “Our first ever women’s Test at Lord’s feels like the perfect occasion to sign off on a career that I could never have dreamt would be as special as it has been.”