Test week at Lord's and the place is a buzz with final preparations taking place before Thursday.

Tension is high as players go through their last practice sessions and the groundsman studies the sky, nervously predicting how much sun he needs to get the surface right.

We make way this week for the England boys who obviously have the run of the roost during Test match time.

We're up in Durham this week so we will be watching from afar, but for our Monday training session we moved into the 'Away' changing rooms as the English team had gathered early.

I'm certainly not a person that dwells on past performances, but I must confess that being back in the 'visitors' rooms stirs up emotional memories from two years ago when New Zealand won its first Test at Lord's.

M J Horne is the last 'visitor' to score a Test 100 at Lord's and his name is proudly engraved on the batters' honours board. On the bowling honours board, D J Nash, with match figures of 11-169 back in 1994, is the last New Zealand entry. That was a huge series for Nashy and the following season he became New Zealand's first overseas player to Middlesex. Unfortunately he was dogged by injury, the beginning of the back problems that still frustrate him.

Speaking of Middlesex, we are top of the CricInfo Championship Division Two table after having a pretty good week in Bristol playing Gloucestershire.

Gloucestershire are coached by John Bracewell and in the last couple of years have almost won every one-day competition around. He has done a fantastic job for the county and is a very influential figure in their progress.

On the third night of the game I enjoyed an evening of the Bracewell's hospitality and polite banter was exchanged with Gloucester looking to set us a target on the final day. They left us 293 in 82 overs, a score we reached five down with two overs remaining. We were delighted as a win obviously gives you good championship points. But it also gives you confidence, and that is vital as the season progresses.

On a personal front, scoring my first hundred for the county was very special. It is one of my goals to score more centuries and I'm very determined to achieve this.

I was gutted scoring 52 in the first innings but progressed through in the second which was satisfying. Scoring centuries is a skill and as with everything you must learn how to do it.

The more I can get past three figures, the more I will understand the process.

© CricInfo