Why the delay? Sri Lanka puzzled over timing of Kuhnemann’s action report

Why the delay? Sri Lanka puzzled over timing of Kuhnemann's action report

Multiple senior Sri Lankan players had raised concerns over Matthew Kuhnemann's bowling action after the first Test, with many now left puzzled over why the match officials waited until the end of the series to report the Australian left-arm spinner. According to sources within the team, some players had indicated finding something "not quite right" about Kuhnemann's finishing action while he starred in the first Test win with nine wickets.

This comes in the wake of Kuhnemann's action being officially reported by the ICC, with his legality now under scrutiny. He will undergo independent testing within the next two weeks to be cleared to bowl again in international cricket.

Some Sri Lankan batters seemed to have had an issue with Kuhnemann's action as early as the latter part of the opening Test. One batter, in particular, had approached Sri Lankan spin bowling coach Piyal Wijetunge to watch replays and analyse Kuhnemann's action. However, Wijetunge couldn't find anything untoward with it.

Despite this, the batter and some of his colleagues weren't convinced and continued to raise eyebrows over some of Kuhnemann's deliveries as the series progressed. They found it difficult to leave the crease against him, as they felt he could adjust and make changes very late, which they found unusual.

A number of Sri Lankan batters did succumb to Kuhnemann while trying to play him from their crease. This is the first time during his eight-year professional cricket career that his action has been officially questioned.

Interestingly, the Sri Lankan spin coach's assessment seemed to be along the lines of how former Indian spinner R Ashwin had broken down Kuhnemann's action a couple of years ago. Ashwin had highlighted the uniqueness of Kuhnemann's wrist in its loading position and why it could create an optical illusion of there being an elaborate "elbow extension".

Cricket Australia has thrown its support behind Kuhnemann and will work through the process of determining the legality of his action. Sri Lankan cricket will wait until the results are made public before making any further statements about the issue.