Saeed Ajmal Test. (Photo Source: LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI/AFP via Getty Images)
Former Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal was counted among the best bowlers in the world during his short international career. The off-spinner picked 447 wickets in 212 matches in international cricket as he bamboozled several batters with his variations. He even achieved the world’s number one spot in the ODI and T20I Rankings.
However, Ajmal’s career came to a premature end after he got banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2014. Reflecting on his career, the Faisalabad-born spinner said that if he had played for India he would have taken 1000 wickets across formats.
“I would have taken 1,000 wickets by now. To be honest, if I played for India, I would have 1,000 wickets. I was a bowler who took 100 wickets every year. Almost every year in my international career, I took 100 wickets,” Ajmal said on the Nadir Ali podcast
Talking about his ban, Ajmal said that the authorities should have stopped him during his debut in 2009 itself. But they intervened when he had become the most threatening bowler in international cricket.
“They should have stopped me in 2009 only. But they allowed me to play. After I got 448 wickets, they realized there needs to be a way to stop him, and so they did what they did. I was the world number one bowler when I was banned from bowling,” he added.
Notably, Ajmal was banned due to a suspect bowling action as his elbow bent over 15 degrees while releasing the ball, which is more than the permissible limit set by the ICC. He could not adapt to the sudden change in his action and played his last game against Bangladesh in April 2015.
Following his ban, the spinner claimed that several Indian bowlers also bowled with suspect action. However, they were not banned due to BCCI’s (Board of Control for Cricket in India) power and influence in international cricket.