ICC suspend Bangladesh bowlers

Bangladesh's World Twenty20 campaign suffered a body blow on Saturday when paceman Taskin Ahmed and left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny were suspended from bowling in international cricket with immediate effect because of illegal actions.

Both the bowlers were reported after their side's opening match in the ongoing World Twenty20 against the Netherlands in Dharamsala on Wednesday.

"As a consequence of these suspensions, the Bangladesh cricket team is permitted to apply ... for approval to replace the two bowlers in the squad for the remainder of the event," the International Cricket Council (ICC) said in a statement.

Both bowlers were assessed at the ICC-accredited testing centre in Chennai this week, the governing body said.

Arafat's elbow extension for the majority of his deliveries exceeded the 15 degrees limit and not all of Taskin's deliveries were found to be legal.

Bangladesh qualified for the main draw in style but went down to Pakistan in their first Super 10 match and face Australia in their next match on Monday.