New era dawns for England

Steve Harmison: Hoping to make England's final eleven

England begin a new era today as the summer's international cricket gets under way with the start of the first Test against Zimbabwe at Lord's.

The team will, for the first time, include players contracted to the ECB rather than their counties and the selectors have looked to the future by including Lancashire leg-spinner Chris Schofield and Durham fast bowler Steve Harmison in the squad.

The match is also a notable first for the tourists, who are making their first Test appearance at the home of cricket, nine years after being granted full membership of the International Cricket Council.

Skipper Nasser Hussain knows the onus is on England to produce a result which will help pull in the crowds during the rest of the summer, which also sees a Test series against West Indies and a triangular one-day tournament involving all three teams.

Ticket sales for Lord's have been slow, with just 29,000 sold for the first three days of the game.

Support

New opening partnership - Ramprakash and Atherton

But Hussain believes support from the fans will be vital in helping England to again become a major force in world cricket.

"It's a great feeling and gives you that extra impetus, that extra boost, that extra desire to play for England. That's what you are there for - you want to be loved and liked and it would be a great boost if we started playing well," he said.

Zimbabwe may be ranked last of the nine Test-playing nations, but they have embarrassed England in the past and will be doing their utmost to extend a depressing sequence of results, which have seen the home side win just three times in their last 15 Tests at Lord's.

Expert advice

Tommo - Putting new fire into Zimbabwe's attack

They are not short of expert advice, with former Australian paceman Jeff Thomson drafted in as specialist bowling coach for the tour.

"I have a lot of respect for the side we're playing against because they get the absolute utmost out of their 11 players," Hussain added.

Yorkshire's Darren Gough ruled out any chance of England taking their African opponents lightly.

"It's a Test match - I'm as pumped as you can be. I want to win and I want to get wickets, it goes down on your record.

England's Test record v Zimbabwe

Played 2, won 0, drawn 2, lost 0

"We are favourites to win, we are a better side - but what they have is discipline, concentration and they have a game plan, which they stick to," he said.

"They just hang around and once they get the opportunity, they try and sneak in the back door. We've got to be concentrating allk the way through the five days."