Marlon Samuels banned from bowling for 12 months

Marlon Samuels will not able to bowl in international cricket for one year following his ban

West Indies all-rounder Marlon Samuels has been banned from bowling in international cricket for the next 12 months after having been reported for suspect action after the first Test on the West Indies tour of Sri Lanka. This is the third time in his career that Samuels has been banned due to his bowling action.

In 2013, Samuels was banned from bowling quicker deliveries. After recently being reported for suspect action, Samuels had gone to Brisbane to undergo an independent assessment that proved that his elbow exceeded the allowed limit of 15 degrees.

Once having been reported for their action, bowlers are given a time of 14 days by the International Cricket Council (ICC) before the board comes up with the final verdict on the report. However, ICC had made a hash of the Samuels case as he had bowled in an ODI in November after his grace period was over.

“As this report constitutes the player's second suspension within a two-year period, he is now automatically suspended from bowling in international cricket for a 12-month period.

“Samuels is entitled to appeal any procedural aspect of the Independent Assessment that has led to this automatic suspension. However, only after the expiry of this one-year period will he be entitled to approach the ICC for a re-assessment of his bowling action,” the ICC release stated.

Samuels has not been the only bowler to be banned from bowling in international cricket due to their action. Mohammad Hafeez was banned from bowling for 12 months in July after his action was found to be illegal.

In November, Samuels’ West Indian teammate, Sunil Narine was also found to have an illegal bowling action and suspended with immediate effect. Narine was reported after the third ODI of the Sri Lanka-West Indies series.

Of late, quite a few bowlers have come under the scrutiny of the ICC for their bowling actions. Most recently, Shikhar Dhawan was reported for a suspect action after bowling in the fourth Test between India and South Africa.

.@westindies Marlon Samuels suspended from bowling in international cricket for 12 months following assessment. https://t.co/OCvUmc4kzH

— ICC Media (@ICCMediaComms) December 13, 2015