Hafeez, Javeria cleared to bowl in international cricket

DUBAI – The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday confirmed that following remedial work and retests, the bowling actions of Pakistan’s Mohammad Hafeez and Javeria Khan have been found to be legal, and the players can now resume bowling in international cricket, 92 News reported. According to the ICC media release, the amount of elbow extensions in both the off-spinners’ bowling actions were within the 15-degree level of tolerance. “In advance of any retest, a player who has been banned from bowling in international cricket, is required to identify the various types of deliveries he/she wants assessed, with a view to bowling those types of deliveries in international cricket should they be tested as legal,” it said. At the retests, it was revealed that the amount of elbow extensions in both the off-spinners’ bowling actions for all their deliveries bowled were within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations for the review of bowlers reported with suspected illegal bowling actions. It added that the umpires are still at liberty to report Hafeez and Javeria in the future if they believe they are displaying a suspect action and not reproducing the legal actions from the retests. To assist the umpires they have been provided with images and video footage of the two bowlers’ remodeled legal bowling actions. The retests were performed at the Sri Ramachandra University in Chennai on April 9. Hafeez was reported last year in November after the first Test match against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi and had failed the initial test, which was performed later that month. Javeria was reported after the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 2010 match against Sri Lanka in St Kitts on 6 May 2010 and had failed the initial test, which was performed on 16 June 2010.