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Journalism of Courage
Muttiah Muralitharan went on the offensive against Australia’s fast bowlers today, accusing them of bowling illegal deliveries and forcing the national board to three of their top pace bowlers.
Last week an ICC bowling committee recommended thatall bowlers be allowed to straighten their arms by up to 15 degrees. Spinners are currently permitted five degrees of bend, medium-pacers 7.5 and fast bowlers 10. Muralitharan’s doosra was initially measured at around 14 degrees.
Muralitharan now believes he had been put under unfair scrutiny because of his haul of 532 Test wickets.
‘‘(Glenn) McGrath is bowling about 13 (degrees), (Jason) Gillespie about 12 and Brett Lee about 14 or 15’’, he told a Melbourne radio station. ‘‘So what about them then, the Australian players?’’
However Cricket Australia said it was a ‘‘gross distortion’’ to label the trio as ‘‘chuckers’’ based on the ICC’s report which found that the laws of nature meant all bowlers flex their arms to an extent upon delivery.
‘‘It is unfair on individual players for their names to be used in emotional public debate which does not take account of the complex science behind what the ICC is examining’’, CA Chief executive James Sutherland said in a statement. ‘‘CA calls on all observers to examine the detail of the ICC’s draft findings, including the ICC’s own comment that it is false to suggest its expert bowling panel’s work has labelled a number of great bowlers as ‘chuckers’.’’ (Reuters)
