Sore point again: Over rates unusually slow in England

VER the last decade or so, Test cricket has had to address several issues at once.

- FIROZ MIRZA @London

VER the last decade or so, Test cricket has had to address several issues at once. First, there is the never-ending debate about its perceived health, or the lack thereof. Second, the problem of slow over-rate.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) have time and again tried to govern the problem—captains being banned seemed to work but they lifted that in 2019—without a suitable solution. In the World Test Championship (WTC) era, they have resorted to docking crucial points, but this also hasn't helped. In fact, England, if anything, have doubled down. New Zealand were docked points for the same thing at the end of 2024.