New Zealand now has 47.92% points and can only reach 55.36% with wins in the remaining two matches of the series. England, who are already out of the fight for a place in the WTC final, are in sixth place with 42.50% points.
Both teams were found to have fallen three overs short of the target after time allowances were taken into account, and the teams were penalized one point for each over found short. On-field umpires Ahsan Raza and Rod Tucker, third umpire Adrian Holdstock and fourth umpire Kim Cotton brought the charges, which Tom Latham and Ben Stokes, the two captains, accepted and match referee David Boon imposed the sanctions.
The top two positions in the WTC table are currently occupied by India and South Africa respectively, with Australia at number 3 and Sri Lanka at number 4. With 15 Tests remaining in the current WTC cycle, neither team is assured of position. a place in the top two.
After winning the Test series 3-0 in India, New Zealand’s sloppy pitching in Christchurch, which resulted in an eight-wicket loss, ruined any realistic chance of reaching their second WTC final.
