"England sit second bottom in the World Test Championship table" - Nasser Hussain slams 'Bazball' ahead of 5th Test

Former England skipper Nasser Hussain has expressed concerns about the England Test side ahead of the fifth match against India in Dharamsala. Nasser Hussain highlighted the position of the Ben Stokes-led side near the bottom of the World Test Championship table.

The Three Lions have won only three out of nine matches in the ongoing WTC cycle. The England cricket team suffered five losses and managed one draw, currently in eighth position in the nine-team table. Their points percentage in the table stands at just 19.44.

In their first series of the ongoing cycle, the Ben Stokes-led side won two matches, lost two, and had one draw. Their challenges persisted in India, where they only managed to secure one victory out of the first four Test matches in the five-match series against India.

They Sit Second Bottom In The WTC Table – Nasser Hussain

In his column for the Daily Mail, Nasser Hussain highlighted the importance of results over entertainment, noting that teams are ultimately judged by their statistics at the end of a season or series.

“For all the good things that this England team have done in making people want to watch their matches, right now they sit second bottom in the World Test Championship table and to me results remain the most important currency. In the end, all sports teams are judged on their statistics. How they end up at the end of a season or a series. In cricket, how many runs you scored, the wickets you took,” Hussain has written in his column.

The Rohit Sharma-led side leads the ongoing WTC points table with five victories in eight Test matches, securing the top spot with a points percentage of 64.58. Following them are New Zealand and Australia in the second and third positions, respectively.

The Win-Loss Ratio Is The Most Important Thing – Nasser Hussain

Nasser Hussain urged the England team to aim for a 3-2 scoreline against India in Dharamshala. The former cricketer mentioned that England missed crucial opportunities throughout the tour, especially on the third days of the third and fourth Tests.

“This England side have provided great viewing over the past two years, too, but the win-loss ratio is the most important thing in my eyes, so they must get the scoreline versus India back to 3-2 in Dharamshala this week,” Hussain said.

“Of course, they’ll still have lost the series, but they can then point to the third days of the third and fourth Tests, when they let things slip on each occasion, as a justification that they were competitive across the entire five-match tour. That they simply failed to take their opportunities,” he further added.

England announced their playing XI a day ahead of the fifth Test scheduled to take place at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on March 7. Tearaway pace bowler Mark Wood has replaced Ollie Robinson in the lineup for this match.

Also read: Joe Root slams Nasser Hussain and Michael Atherton sitting on their podcast