November 23, 2001	Friday	Ramazan 7, 1422

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

SYDNEY, Nov 22: Pakistani tearaway fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar will make his Sydney club cricket debut for Mosman this weekend with opposition openers already hoping to win the toss and field.

Shoaib is using the matches to maintain form during the temporary lack of domestic cricket at home because of the conflict in neighbouring Afghanistan.

But he arrives here with his career in danger of being prematurely ended after International Cricket Council match officials reported him for a third time since December 1999 for a suspect bowling action.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) last week said it had turned to biomechanics expert Daryl Foster at the University of Western Australia to help try to rescue Shoaib’s career.

The PCB is looking for feedback from Foster and his team in the biomechanics department after viewing footage of Shoaib’s bowling in Sharjah.

Foster has previously submitted evidence to the ICC that showed Shoaib had rare hyper-mobility that made his elbow look like it was bending when in fact it was hyper-extending each time he bowled.

Shoaib flew into Perth Wednesday for a short holiday before flying across to Sydney this weekend.

Our Sports Correspondent from Lahore adds:

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has  received Shoaib Akhtar’s footage of the video film from the  International Cricket Council (ICC) Thursday.

The footage sent by the ICC on the request of the PCB to review the bowling action of Shoaib Akhtar which has been reported for the third time in two years. Last time he was reported in Sharjah Cup by Match referee Denis Lindsay.

A PCB spokesman said Thursday that the video film containing glimpses of bowling action of Shoaib Akhtar for  which he was called had been received.

The further action would be taken after the PCB bowling review committee  comprises Ijaz Faqih, Mohsin Kamal and Iqbal Sikandar would present its  report to the board on the footage, he said. The ICC has advised the PCB to hire the services of former pace bowler of West Indies Michael Holding for Shoaib Akhtar.

But  the PCB  has  refused due to financial problems and decided  to  back it’s bowler on the basis of a report of Western  Australian University which says Shoaib’s bowling arm was deformed at birth giving a false impression of throwing.