KARACHI: Mohammad Hafeez is hoping to put himself on the fast track to an international return after being cleared to bowl by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday.
The experienced all-rounder has managed to clear a bowling test and could be back in action as soon as January’s One-day International series against Australia.
Hafeez, 36, was banned from bowling at the international level for one year in July 2015 after his action was deemed illegal in a Test in Sri Lanka a month earlier.
He made an unsuccessful attempt at getting his action cleared before finally getting a green signal from the ICC.
“Following remedial work and reassessment (in Brisbane in November), the bowling action of Hafeez has been found to be legal, and the player can now resume bowling in international cricket,” ICC said in a statement.
Hafeez sounded pleased with this new development which he believes can resurrect his international career.
“I was missing my bowling in international matches and this clearance was very important for me as I can now contribute as an all-rounder,” he said.
ICC regulations allow bowlers to bend their bowling arm by 15 degrees, but anything beyond that is deemed illegal.
Hafeez was first reported for illegal action in November 2014 and was suspended after a bowling test.
He was cleared in April last year, but despite remedial measures his action was reported for a second time in June 2015. Under ICC rules if a bowler is reported twice within two years he is banned for 12 months.
Pakistan’s one-day performance slid after Hafeez and fellow spinner Saeed Ajmal were reported in 2014, with the team plummeting to ninth in the one-day rankings.
Although Ajmal was cleared to bowl last year, he lost his wicket-taking ability and has not been selected for the Pakistan team since May 2015.
Hafeez lost his Test place after a poor showing in the three Tests in England this year, managing just 102 runs in six innings.
He was also dropped from the Twenty20 and one-day sides for the series against West Indies in September-October in the UAE, and was not selected for the current tours of New Zealand and Australia.
But with his action cleared Hafeez may regain his one-day place for the five-match series in Australia which follows the three Tests in January next year.
He spent over a month undergoing rehabilitation before deciding to take the official ICC assessment. Beforehand he underwent informal testing in PCB’s biomechanics lab at LUMS University in Lahore to make sure his flex was within allowable 15-degree limit.
On November 17, Hafeez underwent the reassessment at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane where it was revealed that the amount of elbow extension for all his offspin deliveries was within the level of tolerance.
The umpires are still able to report Hafeez if they believe he is displaying a suspect action and not reproducing the legal action from the reassessment. To assist the umpires, they will be provided with images and video footage of the bowler’s remodelled legal bowling action.
