The veteran left-arm spinner from Bangladesh and their former captain of the side, Shakib Al Hasan, has been suspended from bowling in all the competitions organized by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after his action was found to be illegal at the testing at Loughborough University at the start of this month.
The bowling action of Shakib Al Hasan came under scrutiny during his one-off appearance for Surrey in the County Championship 2024 by the on-field umpires in September. The Magura-born was part of the historic 0-2 red-ball series victory in Pakistan for the very first time in their history of the game before making the trip.
The left-handed batter, then, returned to the two-match Test series in India in September, where during the second Kanpur game of the five-day format, he announced that the upcoming home Test series, by then, against South Africa would be his final red-ball clash. But the political situation of the country didn’t allow him to enter, as he has been out of the Tigers side since then across formats, having already taken retirement from the shortest format.
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To overturn the suspension, Shakib Al Hasan will need to pass an independent reassessment of his action, which will be that his degree of elbow extension in testing will need to be below the 15-degree threshold laid out in the regulations. The suspension is officially dated back to December 10, when the results of the examination came into the hands of the ECB.
Shakib Al Hasan suspended from bowling in ECB-run cricket events
The 37-year-old, in all likelihood, has taken part in his last Test match against India, as he could end his 71-match red-ball career with 4609 runs at an average of around 38 and a strike rate of over 61 with the help of five centuries and 31 half-centuries at the best score of 217.
In the bowling department, the most suitable and strongest weapon of the bowling all-rounder, he has claimed 246 scalps in 121 innings at an average of nearly 32 and a strike rate of 63.7, thanks to 11 four-wicket and 19 five-wicket hauls with a best figure of 7/36 in an inning.
In that one-off domestic game in Taunton, Shakib Al Hasan came as the first change bowler for Surrey, where he picked up four wickets in 33.5 overs, including seven maidens, besides giving away 97 runs. The batter couldn’t do much with the stick in the first innings, being dismissed for just 12 runs in 24 deliveries.
In the second innings, the spinner recorded a five-wicket haul in 29.3 overs, giving away 96 runs. However, his team went on to lose the contest by 111 runs. That was also his first appearance in the county cricket since 2010-11.
The career of Shakib Al Hasan has gone through a roller coaster graph, having been destroyed by the controversy stemming from his role as a Member of the Parliament in the now overturned Awami League government in Bangladesh, following the protest from hundreds of civilians, most of who are university students, who were killed in July and August.
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The former captain of the national side has desired to take his international farewell after being part of the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025, which is scheduled to take place from the third week of February to the second week of March.
Shakib Al Hasan was recently part of the Abu Dhabi T10 league. His ban by the ECB, if not solved in the near future, could raise questions over his position in the Hundred’s next edition.