Usman Tariq was in the limelight when he took the big wicket of Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav during the T20 World Cup group stage between India and Pakistan at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
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Usman Tariq finally got his reward from the penultimate ball of his spell when he dismissed Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav during their T20 World Cup match at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday. Although he didn’t have to be between the wickets for most of his spell, Tariq made a significant impact with his economical bowling and kept the Indian batting in check at all times.
The dismissal came via smart bowling. Tariq paused in his delivery stride before sending a flatter delivery. Suryakumar moved across his stumps and looked to pull it over mid-wicket but mistimed the shot completely. A big boundary at the R Premadasa Stadium ensured that it didn’t go all the way. Saim Ayub seemed to misjudge the catch initially on the boundary but held on in the end.
Image: AP
After the wicket, Tariq put on a memorable celebration – doing his trademark bowing gesture, reminiscent of Robin Uthappa’s iconic celebration during the famous bowl-out against Pakistan in 2007, before kissing the departing Indian captain. Suryakumar departed after making 32 off 27 balls.
Spinners dominate as Pakistan restrict India
India’s innings, which went into bat after losing the toss, was built on a strong knock from Ishan Kishan, who took the game away from Pakistan despite the early fall of Abhishek Sharma in the very first over bowled by skipper Salman Ali Agha.
The rest of the Indian batsmen found it difficult to find boundaries against a Pakistan attack that took a sharp turn. Agha produced a tactical masterstroke, using pace for just two overs throughout the innings and relying heavily on his spinners to take advantage of Colombo’s slow conditions.
The strategy paid off as Saim Ayub emerged as the pick of Pakistan’s bowlers, finishing with impressive figures of three wickets for just 25 runs in his four overs.
Pakistan’s disciplined bowling performance kept India’s scoring rate at bay throughout the innings, setting up what promises to be an exciting chase.
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Issued by:
Amar Panicker
Published on:
February 15, 2026