West Indies all-rounder Marlon Samuels has been cleared to resume bowling in international cricket after his remodeled action was found legal, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Thursday (February 16).
The 36-year-old was banned from bowling in December 2015 after being reported during the Galle Test against Sri Lanka earlier in October. It was the second time his action was reported in a space of two years and was consequently banned from bowling.
But he has been permitted to bowl now after a reassessment last month at the National Cricket Performance Centre in Loughborough, showed the amount of elbow extension for his remodeled action is well within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations for the review of bowlers reported with suspected illegal bowling actions.
“On 29 January, Samuels underwent a reassessment of his bowling action at the National Cricket Performance Centre in Loughborough where it was revealed that the amount of elbow extension for all his off-spin deliveries was within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations for the review of bowlers reported with suspected illegal bowling actions,” the ICC said in a release.
“The umpires are still at liberty to report Samuels if they believe he is displaying a suspect action and not reproducing the legal action from the reassessment. To assist the umpires, they will be provided with images and video footage of the bowler’s remodeled legal bowling action.”
Meanwhile, the West Indies star will have to remain careful as he’ll still be under the watchful eyes of umpires. The umpires have been given the permission to report Samuels if they find him displaying a suspect action and not reproducing the legal action from the reassessment. The match officials will also be provided with images and video footage to assess the bowler’s remodeled legal bowling action. If Samuels is reported again, he’ll be required to undertake further analysis of his bowling action at an ICC accredited testing centre.