PCB asks ICC for date to test Ajmal

The Pakistan Cricket Board has asked the ICC for a date for the official testing of Saeed Ajmal's reworked action. Ajmal underwent his third unofficial test at Loughborough University on December 1 after which the PCB applied for a reassessment of his reworked action in order to have him available for the World Cup.

Ajmal had undergone two unofficial tests in November and his offspinner and faster balls werefound legal, but his doosra was still over the 15-degree limit.

It is understood that Ajmal looked confident and ready for the official test after the rehabilitation phases and wanted to be tested officially with the ICC's independent biomechanics expert. He was earlier supposed to play domestic cricket in Pakistan but preferred to go through the test to get his name cleared.

Pakistan had already named their preliminary squad of 30 players, including Ajmal, for the 2015 World Cup. The final 15-man squad is expected to be named in the second week of January and PCB wants to push for Ajmal's inclusion by getting his name cleared by the ICC.

Ajmal was suspended from bowling in September after his action was deemed to be illegal for all deliveries. Ajmal's elbow extension was going up to 42 degrees on average in the official tests conducted which led to his suspension.

He has been undergoing extensive remedial work on his action for the last two months with former spinner Saqlain Mushtaq. The first phase of the rehabilitation was carried out at the PCB's National Cricket Academy in Lahore and Ajmal was then sent to the facility of biomechanics laboratory at Loughborough.

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Play abandoned after Hughes death Match extended by a day

The second day's play of the third Test between Pakistan and New Zealand in Sharjah has been suspended following the death of Australia batsman Phillip Hughes in Sydney because of a head injury. An extra day has been added to the Test which will resume from Friday.

Both teams decided not to take the field after the news of Hughes' death arrived an hour-and-a-half before the start of the second day. Play was suspended for an hour as the team managements discussed the course of action before finally deciding to call off the day.

"The whole team is shocked and saddened to hear about the death of Phil Hughes," Moin Khan, the Pakistan team manager, said. "He was here for the Australia limited-overs squad and was very cheerful. He was always ready to talk about cricket."

Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, also expressed sadness on behalf of the New Zealand team and said the mood in the dressing room was "sombre".

"Today isn't about cricket, it's about Phil," Hesson said. "Like the rest of the cricketing family, the Blackcaps players and management are devastated to hear about Phil's tragic passing."

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