Archery damage expected at Lord's

MCC head John Stephenson anticipates that damage will be done to the Lord's surface when Olympic Archery is staged at the stadium.

Stephenson believes that marks will still be visible when England welcome South Africa to the famous old ground for the third and final Test of this summer's series. The archery event will be staged between July 27 and August 3, finishing less than two weeks before the scheduled first day of play between the world's number one Test side and the Proteas. "It won't be looking quite as it used to. The outfield will get a little wear and tear because there are two stands going to be set up," explained MCC head of cricket Stephenson. "It will mean that for the Test match between England and South Africa, the outfield won't be in pristine condition." But Stephenson added that he has no doubts about the pitch's capabilities of staging a cricket match, insisting that any damage caused will be purely cosmetic. "It will still be absolutely fine for cricket. There won't be any big holes in it. It will just look as though something's been plonked on the outfield for six weeks, which it will have been."