Ahead of the highly-awaited clash between India and Pakistan in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026, Usman Tariq has become the talk of the town. The Pakistan spinner has been hogging all the limelight, not for his performance but his unconventional bowling action.

His pause-and-sling bowling action has been inviting a lot of controversy from quite some time now. Just before releasing the bowl, Usman Tariq takes a dramatic pause at the crease and it usually breaks the batter's rhythm. He then releases the ball from several release points to make things only tougher for the batters. The 28-year-old has already been reported twice for his action but was cleared on both the occasion by Pakistani cricket authorities.

Just before the World Cup when Pakistan hosted Australia for the T20I series, Cameron Green was seen expressing his displeasure over the spinner's bowling action after getting out. As India gear up to take on Pakistan, many believe that Usman Tariq's weird bowling action could play a decisive role in the match.

Suryakumar Yadav on Usman Tariq:

On the eve of the mega clash in Colombo, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav was asked about Usman Tariq's bowling while he was addressing the media. In reply, the right-handed batsman did not question the Pakistan spinner's action but called it unique. Suryakumar also made it clear that he and his teammates have been preparing to deal with Tariq's bowling.

"There will be some questions that will be out of syllabus. We won’t skip that. Usman is unique and we will not surrender to him. We have been practicing for him," he added.

India and Pakistan look to extend unbeaten run:

Both India and Pakistan have started their campaign with two wins and will be keen on extending the winning run. India defeated USA by 29 runs in their first game of the tournament before thrashing Namibia by 93 runs earlier this week.

On the other hand, Pakistan started their campaign with a shaky 3-wicket win over Netherlands before beating USA by 32 runs. India and Pakistan are currently occupying the top two spots in the points table with the former ahead on net run-rate.

First meeting since Asia Cup:

The upcoming match will be the first meeting between India and Pakistan since the Asia Cup last year. They had played as many as three games in that competition and India had emerged victorious on all the three occasions. India will be starting the upcoming match as favourites although Pakistan are more than capable of springing a surprise or two. The winner of the match between India and Pakistan will be all but assured of a place in the Super 8.