KKR's New Recruit Chris Green Banned From Bowling Due To Illegal Action

Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) new recruit Chris Green, who is currently plying his trade for Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League (BBL),  has been banned from bowling for three months due to an illegal bowling action. The right-arm spinner, who recently signed a six-year deal with the Thunder, was cited during the Thunder’s loss to the Melbourne Stars last week.

He underwent testing on his action in Brisbane on Sunday and the result ruled that Green’s action is illegal. Consequently, he been suspended from bowling for a period of 90 days in all Cricket Australia-run competitions, effectively ending his BBL season. He, however, can still play as only batsman in the ongoing competition. Cricket Australia has also allowed him to bowl in Premier Cricket for his Sydney club side under the supervision and with the consent of Cricket NSW.

“We’d like to commend Chris and the Thunder for the way they have approached this process with complete cooperation and respect,” Peter Roach, Cricket Australia’s Head of Cricket Operations, said in a statement.

“Chris undertook testing at the earliest possible time and satisfactorily replicated his bowling action in the controlled environment.

“We look forward to working with Chris in the coming months and conducting further testing once the suspension period has elapsed,” he added.

Missing Chris Green will be a huge loss for the Thunder as the off-spinner was an integral part of the team. While Green has not really been a consistent wicket-taker, it was his economy-rate, especially in the powerplays that made him a prized asset. Since the start of last year’s BBL to December 20, 2019, Chris Green had a T20 economy rate of 6.57. During the same period, his economy in the powerplay was only 5.80.

It’s the second time in as many seasons that a Thunder spinner has been banned from bowling due to a suspect bowling action. Last season, Arjun Nair also copped a three-month ban but the spinner has now returned to action.

Impact on IPL stint:

Chris Green, nonetheless, is eligible to bowl in the IPL after being bought by KKR at his base price of INR 20 lakh. However, he will be really short on quality match practice that might jeopardise his chances of getting a chance in the playing eleven. Moreover, he can suffer the same fate in IPL too if he does not modify his bowling action soon.