Bowled out!
Pakistan will have to take the field in the upcoming series against Australia and New Zealand without their most potent weapon until the issue is resolved one way or the other. That’s because the most popular Pakistani player of recent times has fallen afoul of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) stringent rules for suspect bowling action.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) contemplates whether to appeal against the ruling on the prized asset that Ajmal has become. For him to reach that status took 12 years of toiling on the domestic circuit and not being recognised by a spate of selectors.
It was the shrewd eye of Salahuddin Ahmed, popularly known as Sallu Bhai, who rewarded the affable cricketer from Faisalabad with the call up for the national camp. Mr Ahmed was then the chairman of selectors when he spotted this off-spinner who could be a star in the making, just as Saqlain Mushtaq was during the golden period when the likes of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis dominated world cricket.
So the verdict is out and Saeed Ajmal’s future as an international cricketer is in doubt.
Then Pakistan mercifully was blessed with other match-winning bowlers in Mushtaq Ahmed, Saqlain and Shoaib Akhtar. Once they left the scene, Pakistan yearned for someone to make the sort of impact that would leave batsmen across the globe guessing.
Ajmal was one such bowler who, hunted down many batsmen, mostly with the doosra, the delivery which has been described as unfair and illegal in several quarters before the ICC woke up from its slumber to toughen the law.
It was the same weapon that enabled Muttiah Muralitharan to become the most feared spinner of his day. One can’t assess as to how many of those 800 wickets the amazing Sri Lankan garnered in Test history were picked up by the doosra.
Muralitharan was afforded the luxury to operate as long as he was bowling within the 15 degrees parameter deemed legitimate by the sport’s governing body, much to the chagrin of Indian spin legend Bishen Bedi. Former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe has been one of the biggest critics who has been saying all along that bowlers found to be breaking the ICC procedure should be banned for life.
In Ajmal’s case this doesn’t apply yet. Tauseef Ahmed, himself an exponent of off-spin bowling who played for the country from 1980 to 1993, believes the Faisalabad-born bowler has got to work it out himself to satisfy the ICC’s Bowling Review Group (BRG) that reports on the subject of suspect action.
“This is a bizarre situation not only for the bowler but for the PCB itself. Only Ajmal knows how much confidence he feels at the moment to clear himself once he goes through the remedial process,” Tauseef told Images on Sunday. “The PCB must ensure the case is not mishandled on their part. If they are going into the appeal then they must have solid grounds to challenge the ICC. Otherwise Pakistan will obviously lose Ajmal for good.”
Former Test leg-spinner Abdul Qadir was more vocal in blasting the ICC hierarchy. The ex-chief selector minced no words in stating that the PCB has become a mere puppet for the top brass of the ICC. “The ICC always picks on Pakistan. Be it match-fixing, spot-fixing issues or ball-tampering, the ICC is ever ready to jump the gun on us. Ajmal is a victim of circumstances because it is not only the doosra that is being found suspect but also the off-spinner,” Qadir observed while sharing his thoughts.
“I have seen some bowlers in recent times who chucked the ball more and whose delivery actions were deemed legitimate by the game’s governing body. This is another case of conspiracy against Pakistan in my humble view,” he added.
Ajmal was cleared in 2009 shortly after he was reported for suspect action when he bowled the doosra during a one-day match against Australia in the UAE. But these are different times.
Last December, West Indies’ Shane Shillingford was slapped with a one-year ban after his action was reported to the ICC twice. Tauseef was unsure on ICC coming down hard on the doosra.
“Cricket is heavily loaded in the batsmen’s favour. If the bowlers aren’t smart enough they are quickly found out. And if an off-spinner adds variations in his arsenal then what’s the harm?” Tauseef questioned.
“To test the batsmen, the bowlers have to learn very quickly and if they are not allowed to then what’s the point? The game would be poorer without the doosra because it has infused excitement for every onlooker and the batsmen to stay awake all the time.
“First they banned Shillingford. And then [Sachithra] Senanayake, [Kane] Williamson, Prosper Utseya and Sohag Gazi before getting rid of an off-spinner who was undoubtedly the most fascinating of them all. From day one the ICC, it seems, were targeting Ajmal,” Tauseef fumed.
Of course, Ajmal is not the first from Pakistan to be reported for a suspect bowling action. Paceman Shabbir Ahmed was the first man in international cricket to be banned for a year after his action was reported twice in a 12-month period. Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Riaz Afridi (remember him?) and Shoaib Malik, too, have been reported for dodgy actions in the past.
The only route for Ajmal to come out of this mess is how the PCB pleads his case, that’s how Tauseef looks at the possible scenario.
“I think it would depend on several key elements. Our board should have a strong base to contest the verdict. The result of the findings from the ICC-approved biomechanics laboratory has labelled all deliveries as illegal. But if the PCB can find genuine reasons to counter the Brisbane lab reports then only there is some hope of reprieve.
“It would be a foolish attempt to get Ajmal cleared on medical grounds. The most logical way is to rectify the errors that had crept in his bowling action to meet the 15 degrees requirement,” Tauseef points out.
The outspoken Qadir lambasted the lethargic attitude of the PCB in not making useable the biomechanics facility it had imported some years ago.
“It is absolutely mind-boggling that the board had willingly spent millions to acquire the equipment for the benefit of our cricketers. What is the use of purchasing a facility that is lying idle since there is no one trained enough to operate that thing,” Qadir fumed.
“It is just like buying the latest model of a car but not driving it because it would cost something out of the pocket if one starts filling up the fuel tank whenever the need arises!
“The damn stuff is rotting somewhere inside the Gaddafi Stadium and we are still willing to spend hard-earned sums of money on petty things. If the board was really serious then we may have not run into trouble. The facility would have proved a boon for all cricketers in the country.
“Pakistan cricket needs an Imran Khan to clean up the mess in the PCB. I fear for Saeed Ajmal. It would be a miracle if he is able to recover from such a jolt and lead the bowling attack at the World Cup. Without him, it would be a next to impossible mission for Pakistan,” Qadir concluded.
The writer is a member of staff.
Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, September 14th, 2014