Debutants in line for Lord's

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Date released: 1 May 2009

The England v West Indies Test Match, which starts on Wednesday, will see a number of debuts: from players to referees. There are still tickets available make your season debut at Lord's too.

Debutants

Andy Flower Mcc Sweater
Flower: One of many 'debutants' at Lord's England's new Team Manager Andy Flower, an honorary life Member of MCC, will be overseeing his first Test Match since taking on his permanent, new role.

Flower may not have the fondest memories of Lord's as a player. He appeared here three times with his Zimbabwe team - once in a Test and two ODIs, losing all three.

Having named his first squad since having a larger say in team selection, Flower has ensured that at least one and probably two players will be winning their first England Test caps.

England and Durham's Graham Onions
Onions looks likely to make his Test debut Seamers Graham Onions and Tim Bresnan are in the 12-man squad named by Flower for this Test.

Given the 12 includes two spin bowlers (Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar) it seems likely one of those two will not make the XI - meaning both Onions and Bresnan are in line to make their Test debut.

Bresnan and Onions both have experience of Lord's as players. Bresnan played for MCC in this year's curtain-raising fixture against the Champion County, Durham. Onions appeared in the corresponding fixture in 2008 against Sussex.

Tradition has it that the England captain presents new Test caps on the field of play before the match so its likely skipper Andrew Strauss will have a queue forming!

More debuts

Also making his Lord's debut will be Flower's countryman Andy Pycroft who has been appointed as Series referee.

Pycroft only joined the ICC Elite Panel of referees in March. He is a former Zimbabwe captain, team manager and selector.

The on-field umpires will be Steve Davis (Australia) and Asoka de Silva (Sri Lanka) who were promoted to the Elite Panel together just over a year ago. Neither have ever stood in a Lord's Test Match before.

England may consider De Silva a good luck charm. Of the seven Tests involving England in which he has officiated they have only lost once, winning four times and drawing the other two.

Lights up at Lord's: one of the new floodlights is put in place There are more 'debuts' for this Test too. Many cricket fans will see the new, retractable Lord's floodlights for the first time (though they will not be used during this Test).