LONDON (AP) — England batted slowly and carefully Sunday to hold out against New Zealand on the final day of the first test at Lord’s.

After England had advanced to 170-3 in 70 overs in its second innings, a draw was agreed in the two-test series opener.

England captain Joe Root defended the decision not to chase the victory target of 273 after New Zealand earlier declared its second innings at 169-6.

“If you look at the conditions, the surface, it was very challenging. It was slow, hard to time the ball, hard to get any sort of rhythm when you’re batting out there,” Root told the BBC.

“Initially we set out to have quite an open mind, see where we got to after a 15-20-over period. It got to a stage where it didn’t feel like it was quite possible to take that on.”

New Zealand scored 378 in its first innings after winning the toss, and England replied with 275.

The second test starts Thursday at Edgbaston.

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