First ICC match official to raise doubts on Murali’s bowling action dies at 84

ICC match referee Barry Jarman and Muthiah Muralitharan

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Former Australian wicket-keeper, Test captain and match referee Barry Jarman who died in Adelaide on Saturday at the age of 84 was the first ICC match official to raise suspicions about the bowling action of former Sri Lanka off-spinner Muthiah Muralitharan.

Jarman was the ICC Match Referee for the two-Test series between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in 1995 which Sri Lanka won 1-0 to record a historic first overseas series triumph in their history.

Jarman was “so concerned” with the bowling action of Muralitharan that he arranged for slow motion videotape of the bowler’s action to be taken with the footage for closer scrutiny and forwarded the tape with his concerns to the ICC, who in turn called in the Sri Lanka Cricket Board (BCCSL at the time) to look at it.

The tape was viewed by the Sri Lanka Chairman of Selectors Duleep Mendis and Cricket Manager T.B. Kehelgamuwa with a senior umpire of the ICC International Panel and the group came to a conclusion there was nothing untoward about Muralitharan’s action.

The ICC released a statement signed by Chairman Sir Clyde Walcott and Chief Executive David Richards, expressing “misgivings” about Muralitharan’s action. But they went no further, and Muralitharan continued to bowl.

Muralitharan’s bowling action became a topic for fan discussion and debate over the next three years as he became an integral part of the Sri Lanka team.

Later that year in December 1995 during the Boxing Day Test against Australia at Melbourne, Australian umpire Darrell Hair called Muralitharan seven times for ‘throwing’ to begin one of the greatest controversies in cricket history. Nine years later in Zimbabwe when Muralitharan broke West Indian fast bowler Courtney Walsh’s record of 519 Test wickets to become the leading wicket-taker in the world, one person who was unhappy about his achievement was Jarman.

“It makes a joke of the game – it makes me sick talking about it. Everyone knows he bowls illegally,” Jarman was quoted as saying in The Daily Telegraph of Sydney.

Jarman who represented South Australia presided as ICC Match Referee in 25 Tests and 28 One-Day Internationals between 1995 and 2001. He played 19 Tests captaining in one Test against England in the Ashes series in 1968 when Bill Lawry was injured becoming Australia’s 33rd Test captain.

Muralitharan for his part went onto become the leading wicket-taker in Tests and One-Day Internationals with hauls of 800 and 534 wickets respectively.