England docked twice as many World Test Championship points as Australia for slow over rates

England’s rapid rate of scoring has contributed to them taking half as many World Test Championship points as Australia from the Ashes, despite the series being drawn 2-2.

In an early blow to their hopes of reaching the World Test Championship final for the first time, England were fined 19 of the 28 points they earned in the series for maintaining a slow over-rate.

Australia lost just 10 points, despite also maintaining a glacial pace of play. That is because under changes to the penalties for poor over-rates agreed this month by governing body chief executives at an International Cricket Council meeting in Durban, punishments only kick in after 80 overs (previously 60) in an innings, or 160 overs across two innings in the match.

England batted nine times in the series, and reached 80 overs just three times (and never batted 160 overs in a match). By contrast, Australia batted 10 times, reaching 80 overs seven times (one of the remaining three was at Manchester, where rain prevented a natural conclusion to the game).

In a very tight series, both teams scored similar a number of runs (the margins of victory were two wickets, 43 runs, three wickets, and 49 runs), but the different pace at which they scored them saw England punished more heavily. In essence, England’s “Bazball” approach saved Australia from fines.

This follows a change in the penalties this month, which moved punishments away from fining players their match fees and towards WTC punishments, in a bid to make Test cricket more attractive to them. The disparity in docked points for a great Ashes series has shone a light on an unintended consequence, however.

Initially, Australia were fined and penalised WTC points for the first Test at Edgbaston, but the change in the rules has seen them escape with no punishment for that game because England did not bat 80 overs in either innings, or 160 in the match. They also escaped punishment in the final Test at Lord’s and the Oval for similar reasons. England received punishment in all three matches, but both teams escaped punishment at Headingley, where none of the four innings lasted 80 overs.

Khawaja lobbied for change to fines

In a strange quirk, Australia batsman Usman Khawaja had lobbied the ICC to change the punishments after two Tests of this series, which they did. Khawaja contacted ICC general manager Wasim Khan, who Khawaja got to know when the Briton was CEO of the Pakistan Cricket Board, and lobbied him not to fine players too heavily. The change followed quickly, with Khawaja celebrating it.

“I appreciate the ICC actually listening to players,” said Khawaja before the Manchester Test. “I was pretty frustrated with what was happening. I just thought someone has to find a way to speak to the ICC about it. We had played three games and they’d been three really good games with results, entertainment.

“And we were getting fined 80 per cent of our match fee. It’s a lot of money. Just really frustrating as a player, you are giving it your all out there, providing entertainment then you are getting stung for it.

“Wasim took the feedback. [Captain] Pat Cummins and [coach] Andrew McDonald spoke to him, and to his credit it wasn’t just listening and no action. Actions happened within one or two weeks. They came back to us, there was a bit of compromise. We are trying to go as fast as we can.”

But after Australia were slapped with big punishments for their risible over-rate at Old Trafford, Khawaja was not happy again. He tweeted: “Don’t even get the chance to bowl in the second innings at Manchester due to 2 days of rain and ICC still issue fines and take 10 WTC points of us for slow over rates! That makes a lot of sense… [facepalm emoji].”

The ICC are likely to come under increasing pressure for their cricket committee to look at punishments in the World Test Championship once more as they look to strike the balance between promoting entertaining cricket (such as England’s) and penalising players who are taking too long to get through their overs.