"Good on you ICC" Ben Stokes takes a sarcastic dig at ICC for over-rate penalty after 1st NZ vs ENG test

Ben Stokes made 80 runs in the 1st NZ vs ENG test in Christchurch.

The first test between New Zealand and England at Christchurch finished with a comfortable eight-wicket win for the visitors. However, England captain Ben Stokes was left perplexed after the ICC sanctioned both teams for slow-over rate.

Both England and New Zealand were fined 15% of their match fees and docked three ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points. Both sides were found to have fallen three overs short even after time allowances were taken into consideration.

The penalties have increased the problems for New Zealand concerning their ICC WTC 2025 final qualification situation. The Kiwis, who have 47.92 PCT, will now be relying on the results of other teams to make it to the WTC final. England, on the other hand, are already effectively out of the race to the final, having 42.5 PCT.

Ben Stokes responds to point deduction

England test captain Ben Stokes didn’t hold back in expressing his displeasure at ICC’s decision to dock WTC points and levy fines on the players. Taking to Instagram, Stokes posted a sarcastic message aimed at the ICC.

Stokes wrote, “Good on you ICC” followed by three shrugging emojis. He added, “Finished the game with 10 hours of play still left.“

On-field umpires Ahsan Raza and Rod Tucker, along with third umpire Adrian Holdstock and fourth official Kim Cotton levelled the charges and the two skippers accepted them. Match referee David Boon imposed the sanctions.

Stokes had earlier played a crucial role in England’s dominant batting performance. The England captain added 80 runs in the first innings to propel the visitors to a daunting first innings total of 499.

The first test saw England thump New Zealand by eight wickets. Brydon Carse starred for England picking up 10 wickets in the game, while debutant Jacob Bethell impressed in the second innings with his quickfire 50 off 37 balls.

New Zealand will now host England in the second test at Basin Reserve starting on Friday, December 6. New Zealand will hope to level the series, while England will aim at sealing the three-match series before heading to Hamilton for the third test.

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