England Cricket pays tribute to the Queen with the new anthem

England and South Africa have resumed their third and final Test match on day three at the Oval on Saturday (September 10). While the first day was washed away due to rain, Day 2 was cancelled due to the demise of Queen Elizabeth II. England cricket paid an emotional tribute to the Queen ahead of the start of day three with a new national anthem God Save The King.

The new national anthem was sung for the first time since King Charles III took over the throne of the United Kingdom. The God Save The King anthem was last heard in February 6, 1952, when Queen Elizabeth’s father King George VI was passed away. 

Both England and South African players received the guard of honour by Armed Forces while entering for the anthem. A minute’s silence was ended with Senior NCO Robert Brockelsby Miller of the Irish Guards – the highest-ranked soldier present ringing the bell. Then South Africa’s national anthem was sung by singer Laura Wright before England’s new national anthem

“It’s always very special to stand on the ground and sing the national anthem and today will have even more on it. The national anthem might be sung a little bit louder than it is normally, and rightly so. It’s great knowing that we’re going to be playing this game, not just for us but in memory of the Queen, so it’s a very special occasion for us,” England captain Ben Stokes said before the match.

The Oval crowd joined the players to sing the God Save The King anthem and continue to applaud with clapping till James Anderson delivered the first ball.