Not a simple twist of arm
11 Sept 2014 4:17 AM IST
The ban imposed by ICC on Saeed Ajmal for illegal bowling action is a deadly blow to Pakistan’s ‘threatening’ bowling unit, feels former skipper Rashid Latif. Latif said on Tuesday the ban was a major setback for the Pakistan team, which lacks quality spin options ahead of the impending tour of Australia in October and the crucial Cricket World Cup which is just five months away.
‘The sad part is that we haven’t tried any other specialist off-spinner in international matches and now our World Cup plans are severely dented. Pakistan bowling is finished without Ajmal. I had doubts for the last few months … because the way he bowls it’s hard to get away with in Test matches,’ Latif was quoted as saying by the Cricket Australia (CA) website.
The ICC confirmed an independent analysis has found Ajmal’s bowling action to be illegal and, as such, the player has been suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect. The analysis revealed that all his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations. Latif doubts whether there was enough time for Ajmal to rework on his bowling action, be tested again and cleared by the ICC before the World Cup starting 14 February 2015.
After Australia’s tour in October, Pakistan will host New Zealand in the UAE, where Ajmal had picked up 67 wickets in 12 Tests. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has formed a committee to identify and help bowlers with suspected action and help them remodel their action. Former pacer Mohammad Akram, spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed and umpire Aleem Dar will be a part of the committee.
In the past, Pakistan’s Shoaib Akhtar, Shoaib Malik, Shabbir Ahmed, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Hafeez and Riaz Afridi have all been reported for suspect action. In 2005, Ahmed became the first bowler ever to be banned for a 12-month period after he was reported to ICC twice in 12 months.
Saqlain offers help
The pioneer of ‘doosra’ Saqlain Mushtaq on Tuesday came out in support of Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, who has been suspended from bowling international cricket by the ICC after his action was deemed illegal by parent body’s expert panel.
Saqlain, one of the most wily off-break bowlers of all time took to micro-blogging site twitter offering his help for the troubled spinner. ‘I will help and support saeed ajmal to the best of my ability if required,’ Saqlain wrote on his twitter page.
Ajmal’s teammate and fast bowler Umar Gul also expressed his solidarity with his colleague and wished that he would soon be back in Pakistan colours. ‘Wish @REALsaeedajmal can modify his bowling action n get back with a bang. biggest asset of Pakistan cricke. all prayers wd (sic) him,’ Gul wrote on twitter. However South African opening batsman Quinton de Kock made a tongue-in-cheek remark on the social networking site about the decision on Ajmal. ‘Whether he chucks it or not, I’d like to see someone chuck it better than he does #SaeedAjmal’ De Kock commented.
Incidentally, Ajmal has taken the highest number of wickets in international cricket across all formats in the past three years. While it was 89 wickets in 2011, it rose to 95 in 2012 and was a whopping 111 during last year.
Qadir slams ICC ban
Pakistan spin great Abdul Qadir has lashed out at the ICC after it imposed a ban on off-spinner Saeed Ajmal from playing in international cricket.
‘The ICC is biased towards Pakistani players. All its rules and penalties are only for our players,’ Qadir told PTI on Tuesday. But the former chief selector didn’t see the absence of Ajmal making a big difference to the Pakistan team. ‘Honestly even when he was playing in recent times the team and our bowling has struggled so I don’t see this as a big big setback,’ said the legendary leg-spinner.
Qadir said it was unfortunate the way ICC had always treated Pakistani players. ‘Whenever something like this happens our players are targeted. When we mastered the art of reverse swing they said it is cheating now everybody is doing it,’ he said.
‘Look at the Indian board or even Sri Lanka see how they tackle the ICC. They are always there to defend their players,’ he added.
‘The sad part is that we haven’t tried any other specialist off-spinner in international matches and now our World Cup plans are severely dented. Pakistan bowling is finished without Ajmal. I had doubts for the last few months … because the way he bowls it’s hard to get away with in Test matches,’ Latif was quoted as saying by the Cricket Australia (CA) website.
The ICC confirmed an independent analysis has found Ajmal’s bowling action to be illegal and, as such, the player has been suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect. The analysis revealed that all his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations. Latif doubts whether there was enough time for Ajmal to rework on his bowling action, be tested again and cleared by the ICC before the World Cup starting 14 February 2015.
After Australia’s tour in October, Pakistan will host New Zealand in the UAE, where Ajmal had picked up 67 wickets in 12 Tests. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has formed a committee to identify and help bowlers with suspected action and help them remodel their action. Former pacer Mohammad Akram, spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed and umpire Aleem Dar will be a part of the committee.
In the past, Pakistan’s Shoaib Akhtar, Shoaib Malik, Shabbir Ahmed, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Hafeez and Riaz Afridi have all been reported for suspect action. In 2005, Ahmed became the first bowler ever to be banned for a 12-month period after he was reported to ICC twice in 12 months.
Saqlain offers help
The pioneer of ‘doosra’ Saqlain Mushtaq on Tuesday came out in support of Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal, who has been suspended from bowling international cricket by the ICC after his action was deemed illegal by parent body’s expert panel.
Saqlain, one of the most wily off-break bowlers of all time took to micro-blogging site twitter offering his help for the troubled spinner. ‘I will help and support saeed ajmal to the best of my ability if required,’ Saqlain wrote on his twitter page.
Ajmal’s teammate and fast bowler Umar Gul also expressed his solidarity with his colleague and wished that he would soon be back in Pakistan colours. ‘Wish @REALsaeedajmal can modify his bowling action n get back with a bang. biggest asset of Pakistan cricke. all prayers wd (sic) him,’ Gul wrote on twitter. However South African opening batsman Quinton de Kock made a tongue-in-cheek remark on the social networking site about the decision on Ajmal. ‘Whether he chucks it or not, I’d like to see someone chuck it better than he does #SaeedAjmal’ De Kock commented.
Incidentally, Ajmal has taken the highest number of wickets in international cricket across all formats in the past three years. While it was 89 wickets in 2011, it rose to 95 in 2012 and was a whopping 111 during last year.
Qadir slams ICC ban
Pakistan spin great Abdul Qadir has lashed out at the ICC after it imposed a ban on off-spinner Saeed Ajmal from playing in international cricket.
‘The ICC is biased towards Pakistani players. All its rules and penalties are only for our players,’ Qadir told PTI on Tuesday. But the former chief selector didn’t see the absence of Ajmal making a big difference to the Pakistan team. ‘Honestly even when he was playing in recent times the team and our bowling has struggled so I don’t see this as a big big setback,’ said the legendary leg-spinner.
Qadir said it was unfortunate the way ICC had always treated Pakistani players. ‘Whenever something like this happens our players are targeted. When we mastered the art of reverse swing they said it is cheating now everybody is doing it,’ he said.
‘Look at the Indian board or even Sri Lanka see how they tackle the ICC. They are always there to defend their players,’ he added.
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