WICB throws its weight behind embattled Sunil Narine

St. John's (Antigua), December 1 - The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has given Sunil Narine its full backing after the beleaguered off-spinner was banned from bowling in international cricket because of an illegal action.

Director of Cricket Richard Pybus said on Monday the board would fully support Narine during his rehabilitation and backed the Trinidadian to bounce back from the latest blow to his career, reports CMC.

"It will be a blow to Sunil to have failed the ICC biomechanics assessment of his action and be suspended from bowling," Pybus said.

"We will be offering our support to Sunil as he does the remedial work on his bowling action. I know the time and effort he has put in to do this work previously and I am sure this will just deepen his resolve to come back a better bowler."

Narine was reported following the third One-day International (ODI) of the Sri Lanka tour earlier this month and subsequently underwent testing on his action at the Loughborough University, England.

According to the International Cricket Council (ICC), the rest results showed that "all variations of his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under the regulations."

Narine was suspended from bowling in international cricket with "immediate effect" but will be allowed to continue playing in the WICB domestic tournaments.

Under ICC's regulations, he can ask for his action to be re-assessed after he has undergone rehabilitation.

Narine is the leading bowler in both limited overs format rankings.

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