COLOMBO, April 18: Sri Lanka's cricket authorities have raised concerns over the conduct of match referee Chris Broad after he reported controversial off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan for a suspect bowling action.

Sri Lanka Cricket chairman Mohan de Silva said on Sunday they had informally raised the issue with the International Cricket Council (ICC) about Broad's behaviour during Australia's tour here last month.

"We have brought to the notice of the ICC about his general conduct," de Silva said. "It is not a formal protest or a complaint, but a letter to keep the ICC informed as part of our responsibility."

Former England batsman Broad reported Muralitharan after watching the Sri Lankan bowl his controversial delivery called 'doosra' during the third and final Test against Australia here in March.

Sri Lankan officials raised concerns at the time, pointing out that Broad had acted unilaterally without any of the umpires raising the issue. Muralitharan was then sent to Australia to work on his bowling action with a biomechanical expert.

De Silva said he was confident Muralitharan would be able to continue bowling the 'doosra', a delivery which spins away from the right-handers instead of coming into them. He said they had reviewed results from Australian biomechanical experts who tested Muralitharan and believed the bowler would be cleared.

A report had been sent to the ICC for a final say on the matter. Muralitharan, currently touring Zimbabwe with the team, needs just seven victims to smash retired West Indies paceman Courtney Walsh's world record of 519 Test wickets.

De Silva said they were also concerned about the issue involving Australian batsman Justin Langer. Langer was let off with a warning after being involved in a bizarre bail-lifting incident during the final Test here. The match referee had found Langer not guilty of bringing the game into disrepute by breaching the code of conduct. -AFP