Ben Stokes’ plea for changes to the system of over-rate penalties that led to England being docked 22 points in the World Test Championship and condemned them to a fifth-place finish has been rejected by the International Cricket Council. The ICC Board has opted to maintain the existing rules that impose fines and points deductions on fielding sides who fail to bowl an average of 15 overs per hour in the next edition of the WTC, which begins with England’s five-Test series against India in June.
Stokes first raised complaints about the issue when England and New Zealand were docked three WTC points and all their players were fined 15% of their match fees after the tourist’s eight-wicket win in Christchurch last December. The England captain revealed he had been refusing to sign the over-rate sheets presented by the ICC’s match referee in protest at the system since the 2023 Ashes. England were docked 19 of the 28 WTC points they had won during the thrilling 2-2 series due to their slow over-rate.
