DUBAI – The Indian squad, led by captain Suryakumar Yadav, did not shake hands with their Pakistani opponents after their overwhelming victory in the T20 Asia Cup match on Sunday. This is not something that has happened in cricket before. The purposeful snub has sent shockwaves through the cricket world, and both teams have reacted angrily to the unprecedented display of political and moral conviction on the field.
The event was similar to what Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina has done since Russia invaded her country in February 2022: she has refused to shake hands with any Russian or Belarusian opponent. The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has supported her choice, saying that it was a protest against the war that is still going on.
From the beginning, it was clear that there was going to be a stalemate. According to reports, Suryakumar Yadav didn’t look Salman Ali Agha, the Pakistani captain, in the eye before the toss. They didn’t exchange team sheets or spoke to each other. After winning by a wide margin of seven wickets, Suryakumar and his partner Shivam Dube turned around and walked straight to the Indian dressing room, ignoring the Pakistani players who had gathered for the traditional post-match handshake.
But just a few days previous, everything had been more normal. Suryakumar shook hands with both the new Chairman of the Asian Cricket Council, Mohsin Naqvi, and Salman Agha at a press conference before the competition. However, the handshake was quite short. The first handshake caused a lot of protests in India, and more and more people were calling for a boycott of the match in protest of the horrible terrorist incident in Pahalgam on April 22 that killed 26 innocent people.
Things got out of hand immediately after the game. Salman Agha didn’t go to the post-match presentation ceremony, which is a normal part of the game where both captains talk about what happened. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) also filed an official complaint with match referee Andy Pycroft through their manager, Naveed Akram Cheema. The PCB said that Pycroft had “asked the captains not to shake hands at the toss,” which made it seem like the decision wasn’t just made by India.
Mike Hesson, the coach of the Pakistani squad, told reporters that his team was disappointed. “We were ready to shake hands after the game. He stated, “We are disappointed that the other side didn’t do that.” “It (Agha skipping the presentation) happened because we were eager to get involved at the end of the match.”
Suryakumar Yadav, who remained calm when asked about the incident, said that the choice was based on a higher cause. He said, “Our government and BCCI were on the same page today.” “Some things in life are more important than sports.” I also emphasized in the presentation that we are with all the people who were hurt in the Pahalgam terror assault… We give this victory to the brave soldiers who fought in Operation Sindoor.
There was no interaction between the two teams on the field during the contest itself. There was no sledging, no talking, and very little interaction, which showed how serious the off-field problems were. There was only one small exception: Faheem Ashraf, who wasn’t batting, picked up a wayward ball and threw it back to Indian bowler Kuldeep Yadav.
The BCCI now has to explain what happened on Sunday night. It seems evident that a higher authority made the choice and the players were just following orders.