Controversy continues over the bowling action of Pakistan spinner Usman Tariq, some are calling it right and some are calling it wrong. Meanwhile, former Indian player Ravichandran Ashwin has made a post in his support. According to him, there is nothing wrong in waiting for a while before bowling the ball. India’s first class cricketer Shrivats Goswami had raised questions on Usman’s action, reposting which Ashwin supported this action.
Usman Tariq is a spin bowler of Pakistan, who has played 4 T20 International matches so far. Usman took 3 wickets for 27 runs against USA, although his next test will be against India. Let us tell you that Usman’s bowling action is a little different, his hand comes from below and he also pauses for a while before releasing the ball. The allegations of ‘chucking’ against him are not new, but questions were raised on this in PSL also.
While sharing the video of Usman Tariq’s bowling on ‘X’, Shrivats Goswami wrote, “Even in football, it is not allowed that you take a pause in the penalty run-up. How can this be okay? The action is fine but this pause? That too before bowling the ball, it really cannot continue like this.”
Did Ashwin support Usman Tariq’s action?
Ashwin replied, “Agreed, this is not allowed in football. When the batsman can switch hit or reverse without informing the umpire or the bowler, then after starting batting, why are these restrictions limited to the bowler only? In fact, the bowler is not allowed to change his bowling hand without informing the umpire. They should change that rule first.”
Okay, let me make it as clear as possible. Firstly, the legalities of his action can only be tested at an ICC bowling action testing centre.
Secondly, there is a 15° rule under which a bowler needs to keep his elbow and straighten it and to judge if a bowler is bowling within… pic.twitter.com/RbTkY6xJ3h
— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) February 11, 2026
This is completely legal- Ashwin
After this, Ashwin made another post and wrote, “Okay. Let me make it clear that the legality of his action can be tested only in the ICC Bowling Action Testing Centre. Secondly, there is a 15 degree rule under which the bowler has to keep his elbow straight and it is impossible for the onfield umpire to decide whether the bowler is bowling within that 15 degree mark or not. The only solution to this is real time testing in competition. The above is a gray area and it is wrong to accuse someone of using the gray area. In the end, stopping at the crease is legal or not, and I believe it is completely legal because it is their regular action.”
