Kenya's Ngoche undergoes test on bowling action in Lahore

Kenya offspinner James Ngoche underwent unofficial testing of his bowling action as part of his remedial work at the PCB's biomechanics centre in Lahore. He is among four Kenyan cricketers on a 21-day training programme at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore.

Ngoche had been suspended from bowling in international cricket in July last year, after the ICC found his action to be illegal. In order to return to bowling, he must have his action cleared after an independent assessment at any ICC-accredited biomechanics laboratory.

Because the NCA facility is not as yet accredited by the ICC, the results of Ngoche's tests, which are due to come out in two days, are not binding. All the same, Ngoche, 28, appeared to be happy with the progress he had made at the NCA.

"I am not sure about the final results but I am confident that I can go back home with improvement and things are working well so far," Ngoche told ESPNcricinfo. "It is tough in Kenya to get such a facility and you really can't afford to hire coaches to work with players. Me and my club are also not able to afford the facilities to get the remedial work done and this is the main reason I have been idle for more than a year now.

"I didn't do much until I got here in Pakistan as a part of a training programme. It is always good to be in a proper cricketing facility and I am really enjoying working with coaches here at the NCA. They are helping me correct my bowling action and, with the biomechanics facility around, I feel things are going in the right direction."

Ngoche made his Kenya debut in 2010. He has 20 wickets from 17 ODIs at an average of 28.45, as well as four wickets in seven T20Is at an average of 35.00 and an economy rate of 5.83. Along with Gurdeep Bhagat, Rushabhvardhan Patel and Pushpak Kerai, he is residing in the NCA for the duration of the training programme.

Ngoche is the first overseas cricketer to be tested at the NCA's biomechanics facility, which is based in Lahore University of Management Sciences. Since its inauguration in April, it has largely evaluated domestic cricketers, including under-19 players. Out of seven cricketers whose actions were tested, two were found to have illegal actions and were referred back to the NCA for remedial work.