Pragyan Ojha's action gets BCCI clearance

HYDERABAD: Pragyan Ojha's ordeal has come to an end with the left-arm spinner clearing tests regarding his action at the BCCI's testing centre in Chennai.
With the BCCI clearing his action, Ojha is now keen to take the field against Himachal Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy game starting at the Gymkhana here on Friday. The India discard had been under the scanner for almost a year even though he was never officially called for chucking.The scrutiny took a toll on his bowling and Ojha was unable to give his best on the field this season.
Ojha thought it wise to go to Chennai and have his bowling action tested. "I took advice from the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) officials and decided to go for tests in Chennai," a relieved Ojha told TOI on Thursday.
Initially, it seemed to be a bad move as the report went against him, leading to the BCCI telling Ojha that he had go through a rehab process. The left-arm spinner went through the grind and has come out clean.
"I am glad that I did it. I can now resume my career and am looking forward to the game against Himachal Pradesh.There was just a minor adjustment that had to be made which was causing some problem with my action. The momentum of the body was not shifting properly and hence there seemed to be a break in the action. The natural flow and rhythm was getting interrupted," Ojha said.
It took Ojha 25 days of rehabilitation in Chennai to correct the problem. "It was just a minor problem or I wouldn't have been able to rectify it in such a short time. I thank God, the HCA officials and all who stood by me," he said.
"During my time there I had to bowl a lot and each delivery was recorded and scrutinized. I also was given a couple of exercises to regain the natural momentum. It was not as worse as I thought. Those at the centre were very helpful and understood my problem," Ojha added.
'WC will cement ODI game's standing'
ICC Chief Executive David Richardson feels ODI cricket is a perfect bridge between Test and Twenty20 International and said the 50over World Cup starting next week will cement ODI game's standing in future. "ODI cricket is strong in a number of countries. We've just seen a series recently in South Africa where there were full houses and you get good crowds in India and in most parts of the world," said Richardson. "I still think that ODI cricket is the perfect bridge between Test cricket and the short, entertainmentfilled T20," he added.