Speaking ahead of the second Test match between New Zealand and England, Cook labelled the tournament as "not the easiest to follow", in terms of how positions are calculated and the length of time it runs for.
"It's very hard to have tournaments which last two years and keep interest in it with percentage points, if I'm honest," said Cook. "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.
"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."
Cook's comments come after Ben Stokes stated before the Christchurch Test that the World Test Championship was "utterly confusing" and that he does not look at the standings in the competition. Following England receiving a three-point deduction and fine for slow over-rates in Christchurch, England sit in sixth position in the table, with a PCT of 42.50.
Ben Stokes has branded the World Test Championship, which England currently sit in sixth position in, 'utterly confusing' - do you agree with the England Test captain?
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) November 27, 2024
READ: https://t.co/IEUxuw7Y78 pic.twitter.com/UcSMVSWRug
England won the first Test by eight wickets, with debutant Jacob Bethell hitting the winning runs and registering his maiden half-century in the format at the same time. He was the first England batter to make his Test debut before scoring a first-class hundred since Mike Gatting in 1978.
"I was impressed [by Bethell]," said Cook. "I particularly liked the way he gutsed it out in the first innings. The second innings, that was why he was picked for the white-ball, his array of shots... There's a huge amount of growth there, without a doubt, but he's nowhere near the finished article.
"He's probably a year or two years behind a player in terms of knowing his red ball game. But I think all of us who have watched cricket, seen cricket and played cricket have seen something about him. It's hard to always pinpoint what it is about certain players, but when you stand and watch him, he's got a really good chance of making the next level and being really successful at that level for a good period of time."
Watch every ball of the rest of the New Zealand vs England Test Series, live on TNT Sports and discovery+ from 9.30pm on Thursday 5th December.
