Chauhan still under ICC scrutiny
Indian off-spinner Rajesh Chauhan continues to be under the scrutiny, despite the International Cricket Council clearing him of chucking charges.
Chauhan's action is being videotaped during the current series against Australia to remove any lurking suspicion the game's governing body might have about his bowling action.
After the three-match series, the video tape will be sent to the ICC's bowling action committee, which will reassess whether Chauhan chucks the ball.
The ICC committee comprises former Test players Kapil Dev and Majid Khan.
ICC President Jagmohan Dalmiya said that though he had no doubt about Rajesh Chauhan's action and that a player of Fred Titmus's stature has cleared him, the ICC had felt that "bowling at
the nets and bowling in a Test match is totally different". A bowler sometimes bowls differently at the nets, especially when he is under scrutiny, he said.
Dalmiya said the ICC match referee for the Test series Van Der Merwe of South Africa would also give his assessment of Rajesh Chauhan's action.
Dalmiya, however made it clear that the ICC has not given the umpires any instruction to specifically monitor Chauhan's bowling action. But they had a right to call him if they felt or thought Chauhan's action was suspect, he said, adding that only the bowling action committee was empowered to take any action in such a situation.
Asked about complaints that too many Tests and one-day matches were being played, Dalmiya said the ICC had called a meeting of the captains of all Test playing nations in London last year but none of them had raised the issue.
The ICC had found that every team, on an average, plays 30 to 32 one-dayers and 10-12 Tests a year. That means about 90 to 100 days of international competition for a player in 365 days which wasn't a big problem, Dalmiya said.
The ICC chief said that most captains had asked the ICC that their players should get at least two months off a year.
Asked about the Board of Control for Cricket in India's decision to file a defamation case
against Manoj Prabhakar, Dalmiya refused to comment, except to say that nobody should level serious charges without proof.
UNI
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