5 Sri Lankan bowlers who were called for chucking

#5 Muttiah Muralitharan

Muttiah Muralitharan

The leading wicket-taker in the history of the game was undoubtedly the most troubled bowler when it came to allegations of chucking. His action was as such that it sparked controversies on several occasions. Due to an unusual extension of the congenitally bent arm, his action came into questions multiple times.

In 1995, umpire Darrell Hair called him for throwing in the Boxing day Test at Melbourne and no-balled the off-spinner 7 times. The Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga took the side off the field as there was an outrage in the camp. Later, ICC cleared Murali's action in 1996 and then again in 1999 saying that the action created 'the optical illusion of throwing'.

In 2004, his doosra came into question and it was found that it breached the then permissible limit of 5 degrees by 9 degrees. It was found that 99% of the bowlers who were examined were exceeding the permissible limit and subsequently, the ICC extended the limit to 15 degrees. There were several allegations on the governing body that the change was implemented only to accommodate Murali.