Young Mumbai spinner Sidak Singh's bowling career in jeopardy after being called for suspect action for a third time

U-19 Mumbai left-arm tweaker, Sidak Singh, was reported yet again by match officials for suspect action during the on-going Vinoo Mankad Trophy Under-19 One-Day Zonal League in Pune. His career is now under serious threat as this is the third time he is being reported.

The latest incident occurred during Mumbai's match against Saurashtra on Tuesday, which was reduced to 20-overs-a-side due to bad weather.

Since this happens to be the third time the young Sidak is being reported for chucking, the consequences may be severe - the 17-year-old may now be barred from bowling altogether. This would mean he may just have to play the game as a batsman in future.

However, batting is not his forte having played as a bowler for the majority of his career. He has played 7 T20 games picking up 6 wickets with a best of 3/32. He has also represented Mumbai since the age of 13 in U-14, U-16, and U-19 categories.

Confirming the development, Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) Jt. Secretary PV Shetty spoke on Thursday that, "We're awaiting the report of the match referee for that game. We'll then speak to the BCCI about it."

Sidak was initially reported when he was 15, playing in an U-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy game. The tweaker was then left out of the U-19 Challenger Series after being reported for suspect action during the Vinoo Mankad Inter-Zonal (One-Day) competition in Cuttack, where he was representing West Zone. This was as recent as last season.

He subsequently worked on correcting his action at the International Cricket Council accredited Sri Ramachandra Arthroscopy and Sports Science Centre in Chennai. But those efforts seem to have gone down the drain after the latest incident.

Two years back, Sidak, at 15, made his name as the youngest to play for Mumbai in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy. It is surprising that none of the youngster's coaches could help him remedy his action in his junior years. The selectors also ought to take blame for continuing to pick him despite his issues with the bowling arm. Present U-19 Coach, Rahul Dravid, had stated some time back the need to eliminate the chucking problem at the junior level itself.

Mumbai, despite producing some of Indian Cricket's most prodigious talents, has been constantly in the news of late for players pushing the permissible 15-degree rule. While Vishal Dabholkar and Ankush Jaiswal were pulled up last season, Akhil Herwadkar, the opening batsman and part-time spinner, now plays as a pure batsman in the side.