India vs Pakistan Asia Cup match hit by ‘no handshake’ controversy

Dubai, UAE – The wide-ranging ramifications of an ongoing governmental standoff betwixt India and Pakistan person led to a arguable decision of the archrivals’ cricket lucifer astatine the Asia Cup 2025 successful Dubai, wherever India’s skipper Suryakumar Yadav confirmed that his squad opted against shaking hands with their opponents arsenic a people of protest.

When Sunday’s Group A fixture betwixt the South Asian archrivals was confirmed aft agelong deliberations from the Indian government, fans and experts had hoped that the on-field enactment could assistance chill the off-field heat.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3Asia Cup: Is politically-charged India vs Pakistan lucifer driven by profit?
• list 2 of 3Cricket aft conflict: ‘Worst clip for an India-Pakistan match’
• list 3 of 3How India and Pakistan prepared for a politically charged Asia Cup clash

Yadav, though, crushed each expectations by saying his team’s thumping seven-wicket win successful the T20 lucifer was a “perfect reply” to Pakistan successful the aftermath of the aggravated four-day cross-border struggle that brought some countries to the brink of an all-out war successful May.

“Our [Indian] authorities and the BCCI [Board of Control for Cricket successful India] were aligned connected the determination to play this match. We came present conscionable to play the lucifer and gave them [Pakistan] a cleanable reply,” Yadav told the media soon aft the match.

What happened astatine the extremity of the India vs Pakistan match?

Yadav, who hit the winning runs for India, walked disconnected the tract alongside his batting partner, Shivam Dube, without approaching the Pakistani skipper and squad for the accepted post-match handshakes.

Pakistan’s players trudged disconnected successful a radical and waited for the Indian squad and enactment unit to travel retired and shingle hands, arsenic is the norm astatine the extremity of cricket matches.

However, the Indian contingent lone shook hands with each different earlier walking into their dressing country and shutting the doorway arsenic the waiting Pakistan players looked on.

No handshakes betwixt the teams. Salman Agha looked to pb Pakistan implicit to the India dressing room, but thing doing. They each headed consecutive successful #INDvPAK pic.twitter.com/0BbJtYdkAf

— Paul Radley (@PaulRadley) September 14, 2025

Why did Indian squad garbage to shingle hands with Pakistani players?

The Indian skipper was asked to clarify his team’s actions and whether they were successful contradiction with the tone of the sport.

“A fewer things successful beingness are supra sportsman’s spirit,” the 35-year-old swiftly responded.

“We basal with each the victims of the Pahalgam panic onslaught and with their families, and dedicate this triumph to our brave equipped forces who took portion successful Operation Sindoor.”

Yadav was referring to the Indian equipped forces’ aggregate rocket attacks connected six locations wrong Pakistan.

India said the missiles were successful effect to the April 22 onslaught connected tourists successful Indian-administered Kashmir successful Pahalgam, successful which 26 men were killed. An equipped radical called The Resistance Front (TRF), which demands independency for Kashmir, claimed work for the attack, but India had alleged Pakistani involvement.

Two days later, Pakistan responded to the rocket strikes by attacking subject installations crossed its frontier with India and Indian-administered Kashmir, striking astatine slightest 4 facilities.

The struggle ended 4 days later, acknowledgment to an internationally-brokered ceasefire.

While the speech of aerial occurrence came to a halt, the diplomatic ties betwixt the neighbours remained suspended, and the governmental hostility spilled implicit into cricket erstwhile the fixture betwixt India and Pakistan was announced by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).

Did India interruption immoderate rules by not shaking hands?

As a result, the lucifer was played nether a highly charged governmental climate, and erstwhile some captains did not indulge successful the customary handshake astatine the pre-match toss, the absorption swiftly shifted to the interactions betwixt the teams.

However, Al Jazeera has learned that the lucifer referee, Andy Pycroft, had asked Yadav and his counterpart, Agha, to skip the pre-toss ritual.

“The lucifer referee requested some captains to not shingle hands astatine the toss,” an authoritative of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), requesting anonymity, told Al Jazeera aft the match.

Match officials besides granted India support to skip the post-match handshakes with Pakistan, but did not pass Agha oregon his team, according to the source.

This resulted successful an awkward-looking post-match scenario, wherever the Pakistani players followed Yadav disconnected the transportation and waited for the Indians to emerge, lone to ticker them unopen the dressing country door.

How did Pakistan respond?

Pakistan’s manager Naveed Akram Cheema lodged a protestation against the Indian cricket team’s actions with Pycroft, who is an International Cricket Council (ICC) accredited lucifer referee.

“The umpires had allowed the Indians to locomotion disconnected the tract without shaking hands for which the lucifer referee apologised aft the protestation of our squad manager,” the authoritative said.

Additionally, Pakistan skipper Agha did not talk astatine the post-match captain’s chat with the big broadcaster successful a people of protest.

Mike Hesson, Pakistan’s caput coach, confirmed that Agha’s refusal to amusement up for the speech and the media briefing was a “follow-on effect” of the Indian team’s actions.

“We were acceptable to shingle hands astatine the extremity of the game, but our absorption did not bash that,” Hesson said.

“We benignant of went implicit determination to shingle hands, and they had already gone into the changing room.”

Indian and Pakistani players basal for their nationalist anthems earlier the commencement of the lucifer [Fadel Senna/AFP]

Why are handshakes important successful cricket, and what’s the protocol?

As per the norm successful cricket, the 2 on-field players of the squad batting 2nd shingle hands with the fielding squad and the umpires earlier walking off.

And successful what is present a communal signifier successful each planetary cricket matches, the batting squad past enters the crushed to shingle hands with their opponents.

It offers some sides to extremity the lucifer connected a affable enactment and speech words of encouragement.

In the aforesaid manner, some teams’ captains shingle hands earlier the toss, which takes spot 30 minutes earlier the commencement of play.

The flip is conducted by the lucifer referee connected the transportation and usually broadcast live.

Both captains and the lucifer referee tin besides indulge successful a pre-match chat regarding squad lineups oregon immoderate different matters of communal involvement for some teams.

The lucifer referee tin besides conscionable a captain, caput manager oregon manager of either squad earlier the match.

Suryakumar Yadav and Salman Agha astatine the coin flip [Sajjad Hussain/AFP]

What person the tourney officials said astir the incident?

The determination was lamented by the ACC chairman, Mohsin Naqvi, who is besides the president of the PCB.

“Utterly disappointing to witnesser the deficiency of sportsmanship today,” Naqvi said successful a station connected X.

“Dragging authorities into the crippled goes against the precise tone of sports.”

Utterly disappointing to witnesser the deficiency of sportsmanship today. Dragging authorities into the crippled goes against the precise tone of sports. Lets anticipation aboriginal victories are celebrated by each teams with grace

— Mohsin Naqvi (@MohsinnaqviC42) September 14, 2025

Al Jazeera has reached retired to the ACC for a remark connected the revelation that some captains were asked not to shingle hands astatine the toss.

The ACC has not yet responded to the request.

Pakistan and India are apt to conscionable again successful the Asia Cup if some teams suffice for the Super Four stage.

India person each but qualified aft 2 wins successful 2 games, portion Pakistan look the UAE successful a must-win fixture connected Wednesday.

Should some teams triumph their respective games, their Super Fours lucifer volition instrumentality spot connected Sunday successful Dubai.