England and New Zealand were fined 15% of their match fees and penalised three World Test Championship points each for slow over-rates in the first test at Christchurch, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Tuesday.
Although England cannot reach next year’s final at Lord’s despite their eight-wicket win at Hagley Oval, the penalty dropped New Zealand from joint fourth to fifth, a major blow to their chances of reaching next year’s showpiece game.
The teams were deemed three overs short of the required target and both captains, New Zealand’s Tom Latham and England’s Ben Stokes, pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the punishment.
New Zealand, the inaugural World Test Championship winners, need to win the next two matches against England and favourable outcomes from other games if they are to reach next year’s final.
The second test starts in Wellington on Friday.
