Muralitharan will shortly be playing one-day cricket in Zimbabwe

Some reports suggest the new delivery, a ball which spins away from a right-handed batsmen, will officially be declared illegal.

However Muralitharan will still be entitled to bowl.

Initial findings have made their way from Perth, Australia, to the ICC offices via Sri Lanka Cricket.

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Murali, meanwhile, is with the squad in Zimbabwe, where their one-day series begins on Tuesday.

An ICC spokesman said: "Officials can still call a no-ball."

The studies are alleged to show Murali straightens his arm while bowling the doosra - the ball that turns the opposite way from his regular off-spinner - by about 10 degrees.

That is double the legal limit for slow bowlers imposed throughout international cricket.

Further unconfirmed reports suggest Bruce Elliott, the man at the University of Western Australia who supervised the tests, has called for Murali to be given licence to bowl freely until further detailed checks have been carried out.

The ICC has accepted there is a need for further research by biomechanists after a study showed 99% of bowlers straightened their elbows in delivery, some by up to 20 degrees.

Under their own laws, the worst case scenario for Murali is that he will be allowed to play freely for six weeks whatever the findings, before undergoing remedial work.

But it may be that more time is needed by the biomechanists to study the science of slow bowling, giving the Sri Lankan even more of a 'window' of time in which to carry on taking wickets.