Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav recently copied Pakistan spinner Usman Tariq’s unusual bowling style during practice ahead of the big India vs Pakistan match in the T20 World Cup 2026 on Sunday. A video of Suryakumar mimicking Tariq’s action, including his signature pause before releasing the ball, went viral on social media. Watch:On Friday, the practice session was partly affected by light rain, so the Indian team had to train indoors in Colombo.Tariq has become a big talking point because of his rare bowling style, which uses a sidearm action and a delayed release that makes it hard for batters to judge the ball. He has played only four T20 matches for Pakistan but has attracted attention since being selected for the World Cup. Although his action was reported twice in the past, the ICC later cleared him. Because of physical issues with his elbows, he cannot bowl with a fully straight arm like normal spinners.Speaking before the match, Suryakumar compared Tariq to a tricky exam question, saying, “See, sometimes there is a question in the exam as well which is out of syllabus. So, we can’t leave that question.” He added that India won’t give up and will prepare their own way to handle him: “To tackle that, you have to adopt your own way. Yes, he is a different character when he comes to bowl. But at the same time, we can’t just surrender. We practise with similar types of bowlers and similar actions. We will try to execute what we are practising in the net sessions.”
