Former England captain Sir Alastair Cook echoed Ben Stokes’ sentiments and expressed his confusion over the format of the World Test Championship.
Cook shared his views ahead of the second Test between New Zealand and England in Wellington. “It's very hard to have tournaments which last two years and keep interest in it with percentage points, if I'm honest,” he said while speaking to TNT Sports.
For Cook, it is challenging to follow the calculation of positions and the extended duration of the tournament.
“I'm a big cricket fan and I follow the game a lot, and I don't understand it. Unfortunately, if you don't understand the tournament you're playing in and how it's worked out, it's not the easiest to follow.”
Cook proposed an alternative approach, suggesting a two-year table that incorporates all formats. He believes this would create a comprehensive "World Championship" where every match holds value.
“I think all international cricket, T20, one day and Test matches, should be put into a table for two years and see how that looks, because then it’s not a Test Championship, it’s a World Championship. That means every game you play has got relevance even if it’s just a T20. See how that works, because this has worked in one sense, you get one good final and everyone enjoys that. But in terms of generating real interest in it, I don’t think there’s real interest, no,” he remarked.
Last month, England’s Test skipper Ben Stokes said that they don’t specifically think about the WTC while playing the longest format, terming the competition as "utterly confusing".
In 2019, the International Cricket Council introduced the concept of WTC to popularize Test cricket. It is currently in its third edition.
While England finished fourth in the first two editions of the tournament, they are currently ranked sixth in WTC 2023-25 race. The Stokes-led side is already out of contention for a title clash appearance at Lord's next year.
"In all honesty, the World Test Championship is a bit confusing; it is one of those where, you know, we do not really look at it, I do not look at it. It is one of those where, over a long period of time, if you are playing really good cricket and you are getting results that you want, you will end up finding yourself there in the final and in the mix," Stokes was quoted as saying by Wisden.
"For me and this team, it is about taking it game by game, series by series, and if you end up finding yourself in the position where you happen to be in that world test championship final, then it is great, but it is a real weird one knowing that you are playing for something over a long period of time."
"I cannot remember if I have ever even given any real time to be specifically thinking about the World Test Championship to be honest because it is utterly confusing, we play a lot more cricket than anyone else does, that is just what we try and focus on, you know, if we play well, we will be there or thereabouts, but if we do not, then we would not be," he added.
