Mohammad Hafeez cleared to bowl in international cricket

36-year old veteran Pakistan batsman Mohammad Hafeez has been given clearance from the International Cricket Council (ICC) to restart his bowling following months of horror for the Pakistan player. The last time Hafeez bowled was against the Sri Lankans in a Test match at Galle in July 2015. That happened to be the second time the 36-year old was reported for illegal action.

The last time Hafeez played for Pakistan was in the third Test match against England, one that Pakistan would eventually go on to lose at Edgbaston. England won the match by 141 runs and some poor performances with the bat eventually saw the opener dropped to the bench. His replacement Sami Aslam has seemingly grown into the role quite well, to say the least.

Mohammad Hafeez was eligible for a re-test of his bowling action on the tour of England. However, he seems to have completed it only now. On November 17, Hafeez underwent a reassessment of his bowling action at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane 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.

In spite of all this, the umpires are still in a position to report Hafeez if they find his action illegal. Should he bowl again for Pakistan, the umpires would be provided with images as well as videos to find evidence if need be.

However, in spite of all this, it is highly unlikely that Hafeez would play for Pakistan again given the fact that there are a plethora of youngsters who have certainly made a case for themselves with both bat and ball. A perfect example of this is Sami Aslam who took Hafeez’s place in the side for the fourth and final Test match against England at the Oval. Pakistan would then go on to become the world number one ranked team in the world following that particular result.

Hafeez was dropped from the side following the rise of Aslam, Sharjeel Khan, and Babar Azam.