England, Australia docked WTC points, fined for slow overrate in Ashes | Cricket News

NEW DELHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) took disciplinary action against both England and Australia for their slow over-rate during the recently concluded Ashes series.

The ICC on Wednesday announced that it had docked points and imposed fines on both teams as a consequence of their failure to maintain an acceptable over-rate during the matches played in the series.

“Both England and Australia, who played out a 2-2 draw with one Test of the five-match series being washed out in Manchester, have been fined one World Test Championship point for every over short, along with match fees,” the ICC said in a media release.

“Under the revised regulations, they were fined five per cent of their match fee and one WTC point for every over short,” the ICC said.
In the WTC cycle 2023-25, 12 points are awarded for every Test win and four for a draw.
Australia managed to retain the Ashes after the series ended in a 2-2 draw. However, they were penalised by the ICC with a deduction of 10 points due to their slow over-rate in the fourth Test.
On the other hand, England faced a more significant setback in the Ashes series. They lost a total of 19 points for consistently falling behind in their over-rate during four out of the five Tests.

The newly-introduced points deduction system serves as a disciplinary measure imposed by the ICC to ensure that teams adhere to the prescribed over-rate rules and maintain a reasonable pace of play.
The ICC said, “England fell two overs short in the first Test at Edgbaston, nine in the second Test at Lord’s, three in the fourth Test at Old Trafford, and five in the last and final Test at The Oval.”
Hence, England lost two points in the opening Test, nine in the second, three in the fourth and five in the fifth match, amounting to a total of 19 points.
The latest changes to the sanctions related to the over-rate were announced during the ICC annual conference in South Africa last month, and they were put into effect on an immediate basis.

Apart from being docked points, England and Australia were also fined for their errors.
“Australia were handed a 50 per cent fine of their match fee (five per cent for each over short with a maximum of 50 per cent) for 10 overs in Manchester (fourth Test),” the ICC said.
“England have been fined 10 per cent for the first Test, 45 per cent for the second, 15 per cent for the fourth, and 25 per cent for the fifth of their match fee for slow-over rate offences in the first two and the last two Tests respectively,” the ICC added.
Pakistan are currently placed at the top spot in the WTC points table following their 2-0 away win against Sri Lanka with 24 points, followed by India at second with 16 points.
Australia, the winners of the last WTC cycle, and England are at third and fourth, respectively.
(With PTI inputs)