{"id":419608,"date":"2026-02-11T08:59:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T08:59:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/419608\/"},"modified":"2026-02-11T08:59:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T08:59:08","slug":"ashwin-fires-back-at-shreevats-goswami-as-usman-tariq-faces-fresh-chucking-allegations-change-switch-hit-rules-first","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/419608\/","title":{"rendered":"Ashwin fires back at Shreevats Goswami as Usman Tariq faces fresh \u2018chucking\u2019 allegations: Change switch-hit rules first"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pakistan <\/a>spinner Usman Tariq once again found himself at the centre of controversy over his bowling action during his side\u2019s second match of the 2026 T20 World Cup<\/a> against the USA in Colombo. Social media was flooded with \u201cchucking\u201d accusations, with several users also questioning his distinctive \u201cpause-and-deliver\u201d action.<\/p>\n

\"Pakistan'sPakistan’s Usman Tariq bowls during the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup group stage match between Pakistan and USA in Colombo (AFP)<\/p>\n

This is not the first time Tariq has faced such scrutiny. Earlier this month, during Pakistan\u2019s home series against Australia, Cameron Green appeared to mock his action. However, the spinner has been cleared by the ICC twice last year, and his action remains officially legal.<\/p>\n

Despite that clearance, the debate resurfaced on Tuesday as Tariq claimed three wickets in Pakistan\u2019s 32-run win over the USA, a result that lifted them to the top of the Group A standings.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: Mohsin Naqvi denies pushing for India bilateral talks: \u2018Govt made boycott U-turn when ICC accepted Bangladesh injustice\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

While much of the criticism online centred around alleged elbow extension, veteran Indian cricketer Shreevats Goswami<\/a> questioned the \u201cpause\u201d in Tariq\u2019s action before release. Drawing a comparison with football, Goswami argued that players are no longer allowed to pause during a penalty run-up and suggested similar scrutiny should apply here.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven football doesn\u2019t allow players to pause during a penalty run-up anymore. How is this ok? Action \u2014 all good. But pause? That too while loading to deliver. This can\u2019t be continued seriously,\u201d Goswami wrote.<\/p>\n

India legend Ravichandran Ashwin<\/a> agreed with the football comparison but countered Goswami\u2019s broader argument by highlighting what he sees as an imbalance in cricket\u2019s laws.<\/p>\n

\u201cAgree football doesn\u2019t allow it! While the batter can switch-hit or reverse without informing the umpire or bowler, after committing to bat on one side, why are the restrictions only limited to the bowler?\u201d Ashwin posted. \u201cIn fact, the bowler isn\u2019t allowed to change the arm with which he\/she bowls without informing the umpire. They should first change that rule.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to ICC regulations, a bowler\u2019s elbow extension must not exceed 15 degrees between the arm reaching horizontal and the point of release, a clause frequently cited in social media posts accusing Tariq of chucking.<\/p>\n

The spinner, however, has previously addressed the issue, explaining that the bend in his arm is natural.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have two elbows in my arm. My arm bends naturally,\u201d Tariq said in an earlier interview with MYK Sports. \u201cI have got this tested and cleared. Everyone feels I bend my arm and all that. My bent arm is a biological issue.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pakistan spinner Usman Tariq once again found himself at the centre of controversy over his bowling action during…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":419609,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[17850,154815,1721,154814,101,8051,56,54,55,150297,154813],"class_list":{"0":"post-419608","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cricket","8":"tag-ashwin","9":"tag-ashwin-usman-tariq","10":"tag-cricket","11":"tag-shreevats-goswami","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-t20-world-cup","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-unitedkingdom","17":"tag-usman-tariq","18":"tag-usman-tariq-chucking"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=419608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/419608\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/419609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=419608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=419608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=419608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}