Suryakumar Yadav imitates Usman Tariq's bowling action at nets ahead of India vs Pakistan clash; watch viral video

Having called Usman Tariq an "out of syllabus question", Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav imitated the Pakistan spinner's action while bowling to his teammates at nets at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Saturday. Although the batter couldn't be recognised properly, it was a left-hander batter - either Abhishek Sharma or Tilak Varma.

In a video that went viral on social media, Suryakumar was seen copying Tariq's action and bowling with a same pause, as that of the 28-year-old from the opposition camp. The batter calmly played the ball on the drive. The Indian training session was however hampered by light rain as the Men in Blue were forced to train indoors in Colombo on Saturday.

Tariq, who has played just four T20Is so far for Pakistan, has been the talk of the town ever since he was picked for the T20 World Cup 2026. Playing a spinner with a sidearm action is usually difficult. And if he makes a pause before releasing the ball, it makes it for the batters to judge when the white cherry comes out of the bowler's hand.

Having already been reported twice before for his bowling action, Tariq was cleared by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It must be noted that Tariq can't bowl with a straight arm since he has two pointers on his elbows, that stops him to bowl like a normal spinner does.

What did Suryakumar say about Usman Tariq?

Asked about Tariq during the pre-match press conference on Saturday, Suryakumar stated that the Men in Blue are confident of nullifying the sling-spin. “See, sometimes there is a question in the exam as well which is out of syllabus. So, we can't leave that question,” the Indian skipper said.

"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," he added.

Abhishek Sharma available for Pakistan clash

Meanwhile, the good news for India is the availability of opener Abhishek, who had to be hospitalised in Delhi due to a stomach issue and missed out against Namibia, which the defending champions won by 93 runs.

The left-hander tonked the likes of Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy, smashing both the spinners to the far corners of R Premadasa Stadium and showed no signs of weariness while batting for close to 30 minutes.

Once finished against spinners, the 25-year-old shifted to the left-side nets to face the pacers and played with utmost ease. If all goes well, Abhishek will replace Sanju Samson in the playing XI.

Catch the live action of the T20 World Cup 2026 with the complete T20 World Cup 2026 Schedule, and the T20 World Cup 2026 Points Table. Also, know who currently leading the charts for Most Runs in T20 World Cup 2026 and Most Wickets in T20 World Cup 2026.