Muhammad Hafeez suspended again for ‘illegal’ bowling action

DUBAI: Pakistan off-spinner Muhammad Hafeez has again been suspended by the International Cricket Council for illegal bowling action after undergoing assessment of his action of late.

Muhammad Hafeez was reported for a suspect action after the third ODI against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi last month and underwent an assessment on November 1 at Loughborough University in England.

The assessment revealed that a majority of Hafeez’s deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the ICC’s regulations.

This is the third time in three years that Hafeez has been suspended from bowling in international matches.

It is pertinent to note here that Hafeez was first suspended from bowling in December 2014. He was permitted to resume bowling in April 2015 following an independent reassessment where his action was found to be legal.

Hafeez was suspended for a second time after an independent assessment revealed that he had employed an illegal bowling action after being reported in the Galle Test v Pakistan in June 2015

. As this was his second suspension within 24 months of the initial suspension in December 2014, he was suspended from bowling in international cricket for 12 months from July 2015.

On 17 November 2016, Hafeez underwent reassessment of his bowling action at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane and was allowed to resume bowling after his action was found to be legal.