Shakib Al Hasan admits to bowling with illegal action 'intentionally'
What's the story
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has admitted that he bowled with an illegal action "a little bit intentionally" during his County cricket stint with Surrey in 2024. The admission came after he was reported for a suspect action and subsequently suspended from bowling in all ECB-organized competitions. Shakib's suspension was automatically applied to international cricket under ICC regulations. Here's more.
Training journey
Shakib's experience during suspension and subsequent training
Speaking on the Beard Before Wicket podcast, Shakib recalled his experience of bowling over 63 overs in a single match. "I think I was doing it a little bit intentionally because I bowled more than 63 overs [in one match]," he said. The all-rounder also revealed that he played back-to-back Test matches in Pakistan before joining Surrey for four-day matches against Somerset in Taunton.
Response
Shakib's reaction to umpire's decision and training sessions
Shakib expressed disappointment over the umpire not warning him before taking action. However, he accepted that it was within their rights as per the rules. After failing an independent test at Loughborough University in December last year, Shakib underwent training for a couple of weeks, with Surrey being kind enough to help him. "I did two sessions and I was back to normal," he said, adding that it felt easy to him.
Performance review
Shakib's bowling performance and re-assessment
In his only game for Surrey last season, Shakib bowled 63.2 overs (33.5 and 29.3 overs in two innings). He was later cleared to bowl earlier this year after passing his third bowling assessment test at Loughborough University in the UK. However, he failed a second bowling test in Chennai which led to BCB selectors not picking him for the ICC Champions Trophy despite being available as a batter across formats of domestic and international cricket.
Information
A look at Shakib's FC career stats
Shakib has featured in 108 First-Class matches, taking 355 wickets at 30.34. He has 14 four-fers and 25 five-wicket hauls. The spinner also owns two 10-wicket match hauls. With the bat, he has 6,536 runs at 36.11 with 8 tons and 41 fifties.