Nothing is going right for Bangladesh
cricket at the moment. Repeated defeats and controversies off the field are
making the Bangladesh
cricket fraternity reel. Until now, Bangladesh
cricket fans have hardly received any rejoicing news. Shameful defeats and
controversial news have made them doleful and disquieted.
The crackdown on chucking
Recently, the news of Al-Amin Hossain being reported by the
ICC for his bowling action came as a shocker for Bangladeshi cricket fans. The
young lad is the sixth bowler – second Bangladeshi along with Sohag Gazi and
the first fast bowler to be reported for a suspected bowling action by the ICC officials
since July.
The ICC wants cricket to be played fairly and are determined
to wash way all the dirt which threatens to dent the spirit of the game. Their
war against corruption is still on while suddenly, the war against ‘illegal
bowling action’ has cropped up again. We thought that the ghost has been buried
long time back, but it’s not.
During the ICC cricket committee’s meeting in June, the
members were not convinced with the activities of biomechanic lab at the University
of Western Australia in Perth
where the suspected bowlers are usually sent for testing and correct their
actions. And for which the ICC decided to standardize the whole process by
accrediting a number of other labs around the world where they can fulfill
their required needs. The ICC recommended changes to provide the match
officials enough support from the biomechanics to identify illegal bowling
actions.
Such steps from the ICC proved too handy for Sri
Lanka ’s Sachithra Senanayake and New
Zealand 's Kane Williamson, who were reported
and banned from bowling due to illegal bowling actions. Then on September 9, 2013 , the suspension of Pakistan ’s
offspinner Saeed Ajmal shocked the cricketing world. According to the ICC,
Ajmal’s action was deemed to be illegal for all deliveries.
Old fossils re-appear
Now, if the ICC has really been unsatisfied with the work of
biomechanic lab at the University of Western
Australia in Perth
then automatically it puts a big question over those bowlers who had gone there
for testing and correction of their bowling. Legendary off spinner Muttiah
Muralitharan’s bowling action received a green signal from there as well. Now,
will the ICC rethink about legalizing Muralitharan’s bowling action if they are
not convinced with the biomechanic lab at West Australia ?
Over the years, ICC’s attitude towards bowlers has been like
a step-father. Modern day bowlers can hardly breathe. They are simply afraid to
innovate. A reverse swing becomes a black art while a doosra is regarded as
witch spell. Is cricket a place only for batsmen to exhibit their innovations?
If we can accept a leg glance or reverse sweep or switch hit then why is there
a problem in accepting a doosra or reverse swing?
Yes, things should be done in a legal way and the ICC must
allow bowling innovations to breathe by modifying rules. Let the bowlers enjoy
their fair amount of freedom like the batsmen. The ICC should not be too rude
towards the bowlers. It will be pity if such bowling innovations meet a tragic
end.
Note: This article has been published in Sportskeeda on 12/09/2014 Should the ICC be so harsh against bowlers?
Thank You
Faisal Caesar
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