England were left to rue a disappointing batting performance after Martin Guptill helped New Zealand canter to a five-wicket victory in the first of three NatWest Series one-day internationals.
The hosts saw eight batsmen reach double figures after being asked to bat, yet Jonathan Trott top-scored with just 37.
Indeed, the losses of wickets at regular intervals undermined England in glorious sunshine on a flat Lord’s surface.
The upshot was Alastair Cook’s side managing just 227 for nine as Tim Southee, the Black Caps’ man of the series in the Investec Tests, claimed 3-37.
James Anderson raised hopes of a thrilling chase by ousting Luke Ronchi – the former Australia wicketkeeper making his Black Caps debut – and Kane Williamson in the first over of the reply.
However, Guptill – well supported by Ross Taylor’s 54 – led a fine riposte and helped New Zealand to a triumph with 3.1 overs to spare.
Anderson finished with fine figures of 3-31, but was not supported in the same manner he may have been had Steven Finn and Stuart Broad, rested for this encounter and Sunday’s at the Ageas Bowl due to niggles, been available.
It appeared Cook and Ian Bell were setting the perfect tone when mixing good defence with sporadic attacks to take England to 45 without loss after 10 overs; unfortunately, it was the tone of batsmen failing to capitalise on starts that characterised the hosts’ innings.
Cook and Bell went in identical fashion, edging behind driving expansively at Southee, while Trott and Joe Root’s departures were similarly frustrating.
Both had looked impressive in a half-century alliance yet the latter was bowled attempting to reverse-sweep McCullum, who then gleefully celebrated when Trott picked out Taylor in the deep.
England’s lower-order hitters, Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler, also failed to come off; Morgan bizarrely skied an attempted hook when seemingly trying to pull out of the shot, while Buttler nailed a reverse-sweep straight to point.
It took 36 from Woakes – who rode his luck in between some fine strokes – and a belligerent Tim Bresnan 25 for England to post a total of any substance.
Many felt 227 was at least 50 shy of par, although that did not look the case when Anderson had Ronchi taken by Swann at second slip and Williamson by wicketkeeper Buttler, both departing to outstanding catches.
Taylor delivered the counter-punch, feasting on some wayward bowling from Jade Dernbach and Woakes with a series of eye-catching off-side strokes.
Guptill was initially subdued, yet nevertheless more than happy to attack anything too short or full.
A punchy batsman, he seems to time the ball effortlessly when on song – something that was best illustrated by glorious sixes over long-off and long-on against Graeme Swann and Dernbach respectively.
In between those shots, Anderson returned to inject new life into England when having Taylor caught behind via an inside edge.
Undeterred, Guptill – whose last ODI appearance saw him beat Cook’s men almost on one leg during the reverse tour – once again found the Midas Touch.
Aided by Grant Elliott’s 27 and James Franklin’s 16 not out either side of Brendon McCullum’s brief stay, the opener moved within a strike of three figures by pulling Dernbach for a maximum.
Having fortuitously seen a skied drive fall safe and then endured the agony of New Zealand picking up four byes to leave one run required when he was on 99, Guptill fittingly reached his century and sealed victory with a swivel-pulled four.
New Zealand Innings
To watch highlights of the reply, click here.
6:18pm - END OF MATCH - NEW ZEALAND WIN BY FIVE WICKETS; Guptill 103, Franklin 16 - What a fun finish, albeit a frustrating one for England. With Guptill unbeaten on 99, he sees England call for a review after Bresnan hits pad but replays show an inside edge. A delivery then goes for four byes, leaving one run required for victory. Yet he shows great cool to swivel-pull a boundary and end 103 not out. That seals a comfortable win for the tourists, who move 1-0 ahead in the three-match series.
6:05pm - Guptill remains the constant for New Zealand and moves within a strike of a century when pulling Dernbach for six.
5:52pm - WICKET! McCullum c Morgan b Dernbach 5; New Zealand 185/5 - New Zealand should win this comfortably, but have suddenly lost their skipper. Brendon McCullum looked horribly out of form and skied to deep cover, where Eoin Morgan took the catch after a juggle.
5:47pm - Guptill keeps ticking over, pulling Anderson to the boundary. New Zealand managed 29 for one in the batting powerplay, which is more than good enough at this stage.
5:34pm - WICKET! Elliott b Swann 27; New Zealand 168/4 - England needed that if they were to have any chance. Swann gets one to rip from outside off stump and bowls Elliott, who was driving against the turn.
5:15pm - REVIEW! - The Decision Review System works for Elliott, who is given out off a Dernbach slower ball that struck his foot in front of the stumps. Replays show a huge inside edge and the batsman is reprieved. In the paceman's previous over, Guptill struck a brilliant six over long-on.
5:05pm - Dernbach, back in the attack, responds to being driven for four by crunching Grant Elliott on the foot with a yorker that was just missing leg stump.
4:50pm - Those keen to watch the highlights off England's innings can do so by clicking here.
4:43pm - WICKET! Taylor c Buttler b Anderson 54; New Zealand 121/3 - Alastair Cook turns to his strike bowler and Anderson doesn't let his skipper down. The Lancastrian nips one back, locates Taylor's inside edge and gives Buttler a simple catch.
4:38pm - FIFTY! Taylor (71b 9x4 0x6) - And now Taylor brings up his half-century with a glorious late cut off Woakes, which comes after Guptill gloriously drives Swann over long-off for a maximum.
4:32pm - FIFTY! Guptill (64b 5x4 1x6) - Woakes comes back into the attack but errs too straight, allowing Guptill to whip through midwicket for a four that brings up his fifty and the century partnership. The opener follows that up with a cover-driven boundary later in the over.
4:24pm - Taylor and Guptill are still being starved of runs; oh, how England would love a wicket to reward their tight bowling.
4:08pm - Things have calmed a little with Bresnan and Swann applying pressure, yet New Zealand remain on top.
3:59pm - New Zealand took a fancy to Woakes, whose two overs cost 21, while Bresnan is also bowling a little too straight at the other end. Swann, meanwhile, restores some order with a set of six that yields just two.
3:45pm - MISSED CHANCE! - Chris Woakes comes into the attack and after seeing Guptill cut four powerfully, looks dismayed as the right-hander hooks to deep backward square-leg - where Tim Bresnan parries an extremely difficult one-handed chance over the rope.
3:39pm - New Zealand have responded well here, with Taylor playing an array of off-side shots to move quickly on to 27.
3:29pm - Taylor feeds on another long-hop from Dernbach by driving through cover, a stroke repeated by Martin Guptill off Anderson.
3:17pm - Ross Taylor is off to a positive start, clipping a Jade Dernbach leg-stump half-volley for four before driving through cover-point off Anderson.
3:04pm - WICKET! Williamson c Buttler b Anderson 0; New Zealand 1/2 - Brilliant cricket from England; Kane Williamson nicks behind and Jos Buttler takes an exceptional one-handed catch diving to his right.
3:01pm - WICKET! Ronchi c Swann b Anderson 0; New Zealand 1/1 - The Lancastrian gets England off to a perfect start. Luke Ronchi, who has previously appeared in four ODIs for Australia, edges to second slip - where Graeme Swann takes a fine catch - on his Black Caps 50-over debut.
2:59pm - Here we go! Play is about to restart with James Anderson taking the new ball.
England Innings
2:26pm - END OF INNINGS - England 227/9 - James Anderson strokes his second ball over cover for four and Swann adds a last-over boundary to boost England's total before picking out mid-off from the innings final delivery, bowled by McClenaghan. The hosts will have to bowl and field brilliantly to defend that.
2:17pm - WICKET! Bresnan b Southee 25; England 216/8 - Bresnan, having slog-swept and pulled boundaries, is bowled when inside-edging a clever Southee slower-ball. Just nine deliveries left for England to try and bump up their total.
2:09pm - Graeme Swann adds some impetus with an aerial four off Williamson amid Tim Bresnan struggling for timing.
1:57pm - WICKET! Woakes c Guptill b Mills 36; England 182/7 - Woakes, having survived a review and saw Taylor drop two difficult one-handed half-chances, falls when skying an attempted pull, Martin Guptill running in from deep cover to take the catch.
1:37pm - WICKET! Buttler c McClenaghan b Williamson 14; England 159/6 - This wicket sums up England's innings. Buttler reverse-sweeps Williamson straight to point; that's a big, big scalp.
1:36pm - Cracking stroke from Buttler, who makes use of Kane Williamson's introduction with a flowing cover-drive.
1:27pm - Woakes grabs his first boundary when powerfully pulling a free-hit, after Southee's front-foot no-ball, over midwicket for a one-bounce four.
1:14pm - Woakes and Jos Buttler are looking to lead the England recovery here. This is a big chance for both players to make a decisive contribution.
12:58pm - WICKET! Morgan c Ronchi b McClenaghan 6; England 126/5 - Well, the hosts are in real trouble now. Morgan advances, thinks about hooking McClenaghan before attempting to pull out of the shot and proceeds to top-edge the ball straight in the air - Ronchi taking a comfortable catch.
12:53pm - WICKET! Trott c Taylor b McCullum 37; England 124/4 - England lose another wicket attempting to up the ante, Trott slog-sweeping to Ross Taylor in the deep. Morgan had earlier got off the mark by crunching McCullum for a straight four.
12:42pm - WICKET! Root b McCullum 30; England 117/3 - Root's invention proves his undoing. After Trott crunches Franklin for a one-bounce four, his partner is bowled attempting to reverse-sweep McCullum.
12:33pm - Root picks up his first boundary with a flick through midwicket, yet he and Trott seem to be slightly struggling for timing. England are now in decent shape, though.
12:16pm - It's lovely to watch the duo's positive approach against the spin of Nathan McCullum, especially in the glorious sunshine that is now above Lord's, as they rotate impressively.
12:06pm - Root and Trott both look busy; they need to rebuild and lay a platform for Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler later in the innings.
11:53am - Some truly awful fielding from James Franklin allows Trott to get off the mark with a four flicked through midwicket, rather than the two it should have been.
11:45am - WICKET! Cook c Ronchi b Southee 30; England 50/2 - Suddenly it's New Zealand in the ascendancy. Cook falls in identical fashion to his opening partner, meaning in-form Joe Root joins Jonathan Trott in the middle.
11:31am - WICKET! Bell c Ronchi b Southee 18; England 45/1 - Where did that come from? Southee hangs one outside off stump, Bell plays an expansive drive and edges behind to debutant Luke Ronchi.
11:30am - Cook gets in on the act, glancing and driving Mills for boundaries to leave England well placed on 45 without loss after 10 overs.
11:25am - Ooh, that's lovely from Bell, who effortlessly drives Tim Southee down the ground for four before doing likewise over the top a couple of overs later.
11:11am - This has been a solid start for England, with Cook and Bell countering the little movement available. The former enjoyed a momnet of fortune when edging just past slip, a shot rewarded with a boundary thanks to some poor Kyle Mills fielding.
10:59am - Good stuff from McClenaghan, who beats Alastair Cook with four successive deliveries after being gloriously punched to the straight boundary by England's skipper.
10:49am - Mitchell McClenaghan opens the bowling for the Black Caps, but Ian Bell gets England off to a confident start with a fine leg-glance for four in an over that yields seven runs.
Pre-Play News
10:43am - Here we got then: New Zealand's players come out, followed by Bell and Cook - who are donning England's new red kit.
10:35am - Play will get under way in 10 minutes. It should be a cracking day; overcast conditions, with no rain, are expected.
10:26am - Daniel Vettori, who was expected to end a long lay-off today, is not in the New Zealand XI. Here are the teams:
England: Alastair Cook (captain), Ian Bell, Jonathan Trott, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Tim Bresnan, Graeme Swann, Jade Dernbach, James Anderson.
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Luke Ronchi (wicketkeeper), Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum, Grant Elliott, James Franklin, Nathan McCullum, Tim Southee, Kyle Mills, Mitchell McClenaghan.
10:18am - NEW ZEALAND WIN TOSS & BOWL - Brendon McCullum calls correctly at the coin-flip and opts to insert England.
10:08am - Some news immediately, and not of the good variety. Stuart Broad and Steven Finn have been ruled out of today's encounter and the second ODI at the Ageas Bowl on Sunday with niggles.
10am - Hello and welcome to ecb.co.uk's live text commentary of the first NatWest Series encounter between England and New Zealand. It's one-day international season, folks, with the opening encounter of three taking place at Lord's ahead of the subsequent Champions Trophy.
Well, well, well. New Zealand should win this comfortably, but have suddenly lost their skipper. Brendon McCullum looked horribly out of form and skied to deep cover, where Eoin Morgan took the catch after a juggle.