Strengthened by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) tough stand to crack down on bowlers with suspect action, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has instructed its umpires to be more active and take firm steps to deal with the issue at the junior level itself.
As a result, nine bowlers were reported for suspect action in the first round of the under-19 tournament for the Vinoo Mankad Trophy on Thursday, it is learnt.
The list includes a team captain, not a regular bowler, but eager to showcase his off-break skills.
For long, India spin great Bishan Singh Bedi has been advocating stern measures to deal with this menace. The recent incidents at the international level with bowlers being reported to have stirred the umpires into taking some bold decisions.
“It is not that the umpires were not competent of detecting a flawed action but lack of support from the administration had held them back. With the new technology supporting the umpires’ contentions on the illegal bowling actions of some players the umpires’ fraternity appears to be in an overdrive to cleanse the circuit. Better late than never,” said a former umpire.
Off-spinners Saeed Ajmal (Pakistan) and Sunil Narine (West Indies) were recently reported and are presently involved in taking corrective measures.
According to coach Tarak Sinha, “It had become a disturbing trend in recent times. I had a difficult time in convincing some young and talented bowlers not to ape the likes of (Muttiah) Muralitharan and Ajmal.
“Then there were some who were getting away with their style in domestic cricket because umpires were not prepared to ‘call’ them for want of support from the Board. I am sure things would improve because steps are being taken at the right stage. You have to catch them at the young age.”
