Out of favor Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan said that physical exhaustion drove him to purposefully chuck during an English County match for Surrey, and as a result, he was suspended from bowling.
After his actions were found to be unlawful during an independent testing at Loughborough University in December of last year, left-arm spinner Shakib was banned from bowling in all competitions run by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
In a first-class match between Surrey and Somerset in Taunton, the umpires called his action after he bowled nearly 65 overs in two innings.
“I think I was doing it a little bit intentionally because I bowled more than 70 overs (in one match),” Shakib told the Beard Before Wicket podcast.
“I never bowled 70 overs in my career in a Test match. I was playing that four-day match for Surrey against Somerset in Taunton. I was so tired.
“I played back-to-back Test matches in Pakistan. We won that series and then I went to play those four-day matches. The only thing I was thinking the umpire could have done was just warn me first, at least. But it is in the rules, so they had the right. I didn’t complain.”
Shakib disclosed that he eventually had his problem fixed after initially failing the action correction exam.
“I went to do the test, I failed. And then I saw my test. I was like, ‘okay, so these things are happening’. Then I had to train for a couple of weeks so I went back to Surrey again and they were kind enough to help me. I did two sessions and I was back to normal. I was like, ‘it’s so easy’.”
Shakib, a soon-to-be 39-year-old former member of the Bangladeshi Parliament, left his nation last year following the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government. Since then, he has not been selected for white-ball teams and has retired from Test cricket.
The BCB selectors did not choose Shakib for the Champions Trophy after he failed a second bowling test in Chennai. He was eligible to participate as a batter in both domestic and international cricket formats, according to the board.
