LAHORE, Nov 25: Under-scanner Pakistani paceman Shabbir Ahmed said on Friday he thought of quitting cricket after his bowling action was yet again reported to the International Cricket Council (ICC).

“This was the fourth time my action was questioned and I had nearly quit the game,” said Shabbir, who was reported after the opening Test against England at Multan last week.

Shabbir, 29, was playing his first Test after being cleared by the ICC in October.

His action was questioned for a third time in the West Indies in May this year and he was subsequently banned from bowling at international level after undergoing tests in July.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) withdrew Shabbir from the remaining two Tests against England, saying the paceman would take further remedial measures in Australia next month.

Shabbir described the whole issue as confusing.

“I am confused because I was cleared just last month and it is frustrating for me,” said Shabbir, who equalled Waqar Younis’s Pakistani record of fastest 50 wickets in the Test at Multan.

He now has so far grabbed 51 wickets in 10 Tests.

Shabbir was first reported during a tri-series in Sharjah in 1998 and then in 2004 during his team’s tour of New Zealand. He now faces a one-year ban if found transgressing the ICC limits for bowlers.—AFP