The 11th season of the Pakistan Super League is currently underway, and events took a dramatic turn during its 18th match. Daryl Mitchell, the New Zealand all-rounder playing for the Rawalpindi side, refused to face deliveries from Quetta Gladiators player Usman Tariq. He backed away twice, sparking a controversy that ultimately required the umpire's intervention.
In the match held on Friday, the Quetta Gladiators batted first and posted a total of 182 runs. The controversy unfolded during the 9th over of the Rawalpindi innings as they were chasing the target. It was Usman Tariq's over; on his very first delivery, Abdullah Fayyaz took a single and handed the strike over to Daryl Mitchell. Mitchell played the second ball of the over, but just before the third delivery was bowled, he backed away. Tariq was unable to deliver the ball; he initially expressed his objection to the situation but soon readied himself to bowl again.
Subsequently just as Tariq was about to deliver the ball Mitchell backed away. Although Tariq had already released the ball on this occasion, it was declared a 'dead ball.' Observing that Mitchell was repeatedly backing away, the umpire realized that he was doing so due to Tariq's controversial bowling action. The umpire spoke to him, explained that Tariq's action was entirely legitimate, and instructed him not to back away.
Although Usman Tariq's bowling action is undoubtedly legitimate, many batsmen still describe it as a distraction. Tariq pauses for a brief moment just before releasing the ball, which creates difficulties for the batsman. Cameron Green, too, had expressed his displeasure regarding his action.
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CRICKET POINTS TABLE - Pakistan Super League 2026
| No | Team | M | W | L | T | NR | NRR | Pts | Recent Forms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multan Sultans | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | +0.941 | 8 | WWLWW |
| 2 | Peshawar Zalmi | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +2.877 | 7 | WWNRW |
| 3 | Islamabad United | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +2.052 | 7 | WWWNRL |
| 4 | Karachi Kings | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -1.639 | 6 | LWWW |
| 5 | Quetta Gladiators | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +0.456 | 4 | WLLWL |
| 6 | Lahore Qalandars | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | -0.051 | 4 | LWLW |
| 7 | Rawalpindi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NR |
| 8 | Hyderabad Houston Kingsmen | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -1.558 | 0 | LLLL |
| 9 | Rawalpindi Pindiz | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -1.864 | 0 | LLLLL |
| M: Matches, W: Won, L: Lost, T: Tie, NR: No Result, NRR: Net Run Rate, Pts: Points, Q: Qualified, E: Eliminate Recent Forms: W = Won, L = Lost, T = Tie, D = Draw, NR = No Result Last updated on 11-Apr-2026, 08:44 AM | |||||||||
