Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar came to his countryman's defense and unleashed a searing attack on Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis for his chucking gesture at Mohammad Hasnain. Stoinis on August 14 (Sunday) became the second Aussie cricketer to accuse Pakistan's international fast-bowler Muhammad Hasnain of an illegal action. The incident took place during The Hundred's match between Southern Brave and Oval Invincibles when the Aussie batter was dismissed by Hasnain.
The 32-year-old tried to send Hasnain's delivery over the fence but ended up handing a simple catch to Will Jacks at mid-off. As Stoinis started to make his way back to the pavilion, the all-rounder mimicked a chucking motion, thus accusing the Pakistan paceman of having an illegal bowling action.
Reacting to the latest incident that sparked controversy, the 'Rawalpindi Express' termed Stoinis' gesture 'shameful' and also slammed the ICC for not taking any step to penalise the Aussie cricketer.
"Shameful gesture by Marcus Stoinis regarding bowling action of Mohammad Hasnain during #TheHundred2022. How dare you do such things?? Of course, ICC stays quiet about them. No player should be allowed to do such things if someone's been cleared already," Akhtar said in a tweet.
The 22-year-old Pakistan paceman has had a fair share of problems with his bowling action in what has been a nascent career so far. Earlier in the year, a Big Bash League (BBL) umpire reported Hasnain after the game between Sydney Thunder and Adelaide Strikers.
As a result, the right-arm pacer was found guilty of having an illegal action and breaching the ICC’s 15-degree limit for elbow extension. After tweaking his action post the incident, the 22-year-old was allowed to bowl again.
Stoinis' allegation against Hasnain came only a year after when he was first accused of having an illegal action by Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques during a Sydney Smash contest at the SCG. Henriques, at the time, shouted, “Nice throw, mate” to Hasnain after he unleashed a bouncer.
