Sri Lanka off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was reported for a suspect bowling action on Sunday, Sri Lanka cricket Board officials said.

They said International Cricket Council match referee Chris Broad had made the report after the close of the third and final Test match, which Australia won to complete a series whitewash.

Broad was to hold a news conference later on Sunday.

Muralitharan's lethal leg spinner, which spins in the opposite direction to his stock ball, had been the source of Broad's suspicion, the officials said.

Muralitharan will now start the ICC's new streamlined two-stage process for dealing with bowlers with suspect actions.

Broad will acquire video footage of his action from the host broadcaster and send it to the ICC.

Sri Lanka's cricket Board will be responsible for reviewing his action and submitting a report to the ICC within six weeks.

Throughout this period -- which includes Sri Lanka's two-Test tour of Zimbabwe from mid-April -- Muralitharan will be able to play for Sri Lanka.

The report will then be circulated to the ICC's umpires and referees.

If Muralitharan is reported again within a 12-month period then stage two of the process will be automatically started and his action will be reviewed by an ICC-appointed Bowling Review Group.

The 32-year-old had enjoyed a prolific series against Australia, claiming 28 wickets to extend his career tally to 513, in sight of Courtney Walsh's world record 519 but four behind rival Shane Warne.

Muralitharan's bowling action has been the source of controversy since he was no-balled for throwing by umpire Darrell Hair during the Boxing Day Test match at Melbourne in December 1995.

Muralitharan was called for throwing later in the tour during a one-day match and again during Sri Lanka's next tour of Australia in 1998 by umpire Ross Emerson in Adelaide.

Muralitharan was later cleared by the ICC after a bio-mechanical analysis at the University of Western Australia, which concluded that his bent-arm action created the "optical illusion" of chucking.

Muralitharan, who generates prodigious spin from his rubber-wristed and bent-armed action, is unable to fully straighten his arm because of a congenital deformity.