On September 14, the Indian and Pakistani teams had a cricket match in Dubai as part of the Asia Cup 2025 tournament. This was the first time the two teams came face to face for a match since the Pahalgam attack in Kashmir, India, in April 2025. Because of this military conflict, some Indian people also boycotted the tournament because Pakistan was part of it.
Despite the hatred shown by some Indian nationals, the match between the two teams took place, and India won by 7 wickets. But what happened after the match was something that no one expected. The Indian team left the field without the customary post-match handshake. When the match ended the Pakistani team lined up for the customary post-match handshake but the Indian team left the field and went straight to their dressing room, leaving the Pakistani teams and fans shocked and disappointed.
Indian cricket had already decided before the match that they would not shake hands with the opponent team. This situation was embarrassing for the Pakistani team, who kept waiting in the field for the Indian team after the match without having knowledge of their deliberate action of not shaking hands.
Following this disappointing event , the Pakistani team capitan, Salman Ali Agha, did not give his presence at the post match presentation ceremony.
Suryakumar Yadav later clarified the team’s stance by giving the statement:
“We took this call before the game, in alignment with the BCCI and the government. A few things in life are above sportsmanship. We stand with all the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and with their families, and dedicate this win to our brave armed forces who took part in Operation Sindoor.”
He further said that:
“ We came here only to play the match and gave them (Pakistani team) a perfect reply.”
The Pakistani Cricket Board (PCB) stated that this action of the Indian team was against sportsmanship.
Mike Hesson, the coach of the Pakistan team, gave his statement on the disappointment faced by the team, saying:
“We were ready to shake hands at the end of the game, but our opposition did not do that. We sort of went over there to shake hands, and they had already gone into the changing room. That was a disappointing way for the match to finish, and a match we were disappointed in for the way we played, but we were certainly willing to shake hands.”
In addition to the Indian team, the match referee Andy Pycroft also requested both team captains before the match not to shake hands during the toss. PCB has also formally complained about the match referee’s behavior and other officials who let the Indian teams leave the field without shaking hands and did not inform the Pakistani team about it.
An official from PCB confirmed this is his statement: “The umpires had allowed the Indians to walk off the field without shaking hands, for which the match referee apologised after the protest of our team manager.”
Moshin Naqvi, PCB chairman and Asian cricket council chief, criticized this action of the Indian team and said,
“Utterly disappointing to witness the lack of sportsmanship today. Dragging politics into the game goes against the very spirit of sports. Let’s hope future victories are celebrated by all teams with grace.”
Be it cricket or any other game, a handshake is not just a formality; it’s a sign of mutual respect shared among the two teams, ending the match on a friendly note and exchange of encouraging words between the two teams. But Indian teams kept the rivalry on top of this mutual respect.
Now that the two teams will come face to face again for the final match , let’s see if the Indian team comes again in this field with the rivalry or with the sportsmanship spirit.
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In the last over of the match Indian team was batting and team’s captain Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube were on the field. When the match ended, both left the field without shaking hands with the Pakistani team.
Indian cricket had already decided before the match that they would not shake hands with the opponent team. This situation was embarrassing for the Pakistani team, who kept waiting in the field for the Indian team after the match without having knowledge of their deliberate action of not shaking hands.
Following this disappointing event , the Pakistani team capitan, Salman Ali Agha, did not give his presence at the post match presentation ceremony.
Suryakumar Yadav later clarified the team’s stance by giving the statement:
“We took this call before the game, in alignment with the BCCI and the government. A few things in life are above sportsmanship. We stand with all the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and with their families, and dedicate this win to our brave armed forces who took part in Operation Sindoor.”
He further said that:
“ We came here only to play the match and gave them (Pakistani team) a perfect reply.”
The Pakistani Cricket Board (PCB) stated that this action of the Indian team was against sportsmanship.
Mike Hesson, the coach of the Pakistan team, gave his statement on the disappointment faced by the team, saying:
“We were ready to shake hands at the end of the game, but our opposition did not do that. We sort of went over there to shake hands, and they had already gone into the changing room. That was a disappointing way for the match to finish, and a match we were disappointed in for the way we played, but we were certainly willing to shake hands.”
In addition to the Indian team, the match referee Andy Pycroft also requested both team captains before the match not to shake hands during the toss. PCB has also formally complained about the match referee’s behavior and other officials who let the Indian teams leave the field without shaking hands and did not inform the Pakistani team about it.
An official from PCB confirmed this is his statement: “The umpires had allowed the Indians to walk off the field without shaking hands, for which the match referee apologised after the protest of our team manager.”
Moshin Naqvi, PCB chairman and Asian cricket council chief, criticized this action of the Indian team and said,
“Utterly disappointing to witness the lack of sportsmanship today. Dragging politics into the game goes against the very spirit of sports. Let’s hope future victories are celebrated by all teams with grace.”
Be it cricket or any other game, a handshake is not just a formality; it’s a sign of mutual respect shared among the two teams, ending the match on a friendly note and exchange of encouraging words between the two teams. But Indian teams kept the rivalry on top of this mutual respect.
Now that the two teams will come face to face again for the final match , let’s see if the Indian team comes again in this field with the rivalry or with the sportsmanship spirit.
Asia Cup Final 2025 Updates
| Teams | Pakistan and India |
| Date | 28 September,2025 |
| Time | 7:30 PKT |
| Venue | International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, UAE |
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