"Ben Stokes does not understand the table itself" - Dinesh Karthik's scathing attack on England after Day 3 of ENG vs IND 2025 5th Test

Former India wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik slammed England skipper Ben Stokes for not allotting enough importance to the World Test Championship (WTC). The all-rounder has admitted in the past that he has struggled to understand the points system in place, while also bemoaning the strict points deduction due to slow over rate.

England are yet to make it to the finals of the competition across the first three cycles. Ben Stokes has been in charge of the team for a cycle and a half since taking over in 2022. In his first full cycle in 2023-25, he led the side to fifth place after playing a whopping 22 matches in a two-year span.

During the tour of New Zealand in late 2024, Stokes had mentioned that he does not pay heed to the WTC standings since he finds the whole concept confusing.

“In all honesty, the World Test Championship, it is a bit confusing, it’s one of those where, you know we don’t really look at it, I don’t look at it. It’s one of those where over a long period of time if you’re playing really good cricket, you’re getting results that you want, you’ll end up finding yourself there in the final and in the mix," Ben Stokes had said in a press conference (via India Today).

Dinesh Karthik praised the all-rounder for taking the England Test team to a better place after a dark phase in 2021, but felt Stokes' lack of appreciation for the WTC was an excuse.

"All they (England) have done in the last couple of years is prepare for The Ashes. We, at India, value the WTC a lot. Ben Stokes, for some strange reason, does not understand the table itself. I don't know if that is a bit of an excuse," Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

England have made a solid start to the 2025-27 cycle by securing two wins and a draw in their first four matches. They need to chase a challenging 374-run target in the fifth Test against India at The Oval to challenge Australia, who sit at the top with a win percentage of 100 in the early stages of the competition.

Karthik feels that India have enough runs in the bank to level the series, while adding that the pitch has not eased up as it seems.

"Oh, 100 percent (On India having enough on the board). I was convinced India needed to set 280-300 on this wicket. If feels like that (the pitch has eased out) because of the way they batted. Tomorrow, we'll see one or two kick-up. I feel there is enough in this pitch to work with," Karthik added.

Team India had a 52-run lead at the start of Day 3, which blossomed into a much more intimidating prospect following valuable knocks by Yashasvi Jaiswal, Akash Deep, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja.

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Team India had the luxury of capitalising on much better batting conditions and a depleted English bowling unit to pile on a massive score in the second innings.

The English openers looked relatively comfortable against the new ball, and are accustomed to chasing mammoth scores, which keep them in the game ahead of Day 4.

"I know India have a very strong chance walking into Day 4. I genuinely believe, with the attack and pitch being the way it is, it is very much within India's sight to win this Test match," Karthik concluded.

Team India finished Day 3 on a high after Mohammed Siraj castled Zak Crawley in the last over of the day. At Stumps, England were placed at 50-1, still 324 runs away from the target.

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Edited by Gokul Nair