No change in ICC protocol for testing Saeed Ajmal’s suspect bowling action
Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal’s suspect bowling action will be tested at the Cricket Australia’s National Cricket Centre in Brisbane on Monday and the result will be declared in about two weeks time, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said in a statement.
The ICC clarified the procedures that will be followed to test Ajmal’s ‘Doosra’, which was questioned in the first Test against Sri Lanka. The top-ranked ODI bowler, whose ‘Doosra’ has come under the scanner for the second time after he was cleared by the ICC in 2009, though he was allowed to continue bowling with a corrective action subject to a 21-day appeal.In a statement, an ICC spokesman explained: “Saeed Ajmal will be tested on Monday at the Cricket Australia National Cricket Centre in Brisbane. The test will be conducted by the ICC’s accredited and lead team of Human Movement Specialists using the same testing protocol that were earlier followed for the testing of Sri Lanka’s Sachithra Senanayake and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson.”
Reported to match referee Andy Pycroft by on-field umpires Ben Oxenford and Ian Gould in Galle, Ajmal played the next Test against Sri Lanka only to see Pakistan lose the match and the two-match series. The venue and time of the slated test was decided in consultation with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
“This process will be managed by the ICC personnel, and use Cricket Australia facilities. The testing date and location were agreed in consultation with the Pakistan Cricket Board, with Brisbane being one of a number of world-class facilities that can now be used by ICC accredited Human Movement Specialists for testing bowlers with suspect actions,” explained ICC.
“In its efforts to make testing more accessible across cricketing countries, the ICC is currently in the process of accrediting Human Movement Specialists at these facilities so they are able to test bowlers using the ICC testing protocol.”