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• Heinrich Malan sees ‘opportunity’ for Ireland to match England’s fire with fire

  Ireland coach Heinrich Malan said his side will look to entertain when they take on England on day one of the Test at Lord’s on Thursday.

  The team spent March and April touring south Asia with games against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka ahead of their first Test meeting with England since 2019.

  England’s aggressive approach continues to win acclaim but Malan pointed out that with much of his side having played the bulk of their careers in one-day cricket, they were well set up to provide a watchable spectacle across their four days in London.

  “Look, we know it will be challenging,” said Malan. “But within that challenge it will create opportunity too, and I guess for us we’re looking at the opportunity side of things.

  “If they play the way they play and we can execute some of the plans that we have in place, hopefully we can execute that and that will leave us there for an exciting match.

  “If you look at the way we’ve played white-ball cricket, we’ve (entertained). We’ve drawn some cards, we’ve beaten one or two of the top-tier teams in the way that we’ve gone about our white-ball business.

  “To be fair, a lot of our players, their fall-back is white-ball as an understudy of how they play so a lot of their natural instinct is geared towards white-ball cricket which is all about entertainment.”

  Ireland were admitted as full members of the International Cricket Council in 2017 and are currently ranked 12th of the 12 Test-playing nations.

  They have lost all six Tests they have played since their first against Pakistan in 2018 but have fared better as a one-day side, registering 75 wins in 188 games since 2006.

  They will be England’s final opponents before the Ashes begins at Edgbaston in June and Brendon McCullum’s players will be out to impress their coach in order to secure a place in the side.

  “It’s another great opportunity for us to play some red-ball cricket, something that our players have longed for over the last couple of years, and get the opportunity at the home of cricket is obviously a special week for us,” said Malan.

  “We know that we’re at the start of our red-ball journey as a country and very much looking forward to building on some of those building blocks we put in place over the last couple of weeks on the sub-continent.

  “When you prepare for any game of cricket it’s what you prepare for, to go out there and try and win and then play accordingly.

  “Will it be challenging? Yes. Is it a huge challenge? It’s one that we’re very much looking forward to.”

• Seamer Josh Tongue to make his England Test debut against Ireland

  Josh Tongue will make his Test debut when England take on Ireland at Lord’s this week.

  The Worcestershire seamer, who has taken 11 wickets in LV= County Championship Division Two this season including that of Australia star Steve Smith in his side’s draw with Sussex, was named in the squad after injuries to James Anderson, Ollie Robinson, Jofra Archer and Olly Stone.

  He said: “It’s an amazing feeling. Speechless really, even from when I got the first call-up to be in the squad. Now being in the actual team, it’s just a dream come true really.

  “Baz (coach Brendon McCullum) came up to me just before training finished today and gave me the good news. I bowled at some of the lads on Monday, I felt like I bowled nicely and obviously I must have bowled fairly well to get selected.”

  Tongue will feature in a three-pronged seam attack with Stuart Broad and Matthew Potts for the four-day match which starts on Thursday.

  Jonny Bairstow makes his first international appearance since last August after a long-term ankle injury and will keep wicket.

  Bairstow is listed to bat at number seven, with Yorkshire colleague Harry Brook keeping his place at number five after four centuries in five Tests against Pakistan and New Zealand over the winter.

  They are separated in the provisional order by captain Ben Stokes, while Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley will open the batting, with vice-captain Ollie Pope at number three and Joe Root at four.

• Umpire Sue Redfern: I’ll feel awkward and fortunate to break new ground in Blast

  Sue Redfern admitted she would feel both “awkward” and “very fortunate” when she becomes the first female umpire to officiate on-field in a Vitality Blast match on Sunday.

  Redfern will stand along with Ian Blackwell when Gloucestershire and Middlesex meet at the Seat Unique Stadium in Bristol as she breaks new ground.

  Writing on the ECB’s official website, she said: “When I walk out to the middle to officiate my first Vitality Blast game this Sunday, I’m not quite sure how I’ll feel.

  “It’ll be a breakthrough moment, not just for me, but for our sport and for female officials in general.

  “I feel a bit awkward and count myself very fortunate because I’m doing something that I absolutely love as a job.

  “I remind myself that I’ve worked extremely hard to progress my career to this stage and I’ve got to this point in my career on merit.”

  Redfern is hoping her achievement will encourage others to follow in her footsteps and build upon the foundations that have been put in place by the ECB in recent years to increase inclusivity in its umpiring pathways.

  She said: “We absolutely do belong and we do so at every level of the game, whether it’s in club cricket or professional games or international matches.

  “So while I may feel some awkwardness, I recognise the significance of being able to break new ground so that when the next female umpires come along, they can do whatever matches they want and can progress to whatever level their ambition and ability allows.

  “We do, of course, already have some amazing female umpires progressing through the pathways to umpire both men’s and women’s cricket.

  “But we cannot rest on that. It’s still not enough and we need to do more to get more female officials into our sport.”