With Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav deliberately skipping shaking hands with Pakistani players after the Asia Cup 2025 match, he opened up about the team’s decision to not shake hands with opponents.
Be it during the toss or after the match, SKY did not shake hands with Pakistan cricket team skipper Salman Ali Agha and walked straight back to the dressing room.
Citing the reasons for the decisions, he said that to it, adding some things are ahead of ‘sportsman spirit’.
We took a call as we came here to only play. We gave a proper reply. We are aligned with BCCI and the government. I feel a few things in life are ahead of sportsman spirit. I have told it at the presentation as well. We stand with all the victims of the Pahalagam terror attack.”
“We stand with their families also and express our solidarity. As I said, we dedicate this win to our brave armed forces who took part in Operation Sindoor. As they continue to inspire us all, we will try our best to, whenever given the opportunity, inspire them as well if possible,” he said.
Match boycott calls:
Despite calls for a boycott amid heightened geopolitical tensions between the two nations following the Pahalgam terror attack in April and the ensuing ‘Operation Sindoor’ by India in May, the match was still played.
Why Salman Ali Agha did not attend the presentation ceremony?
Citing the reason for Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha not attend the presentation ceremony, Pakistan coach Mike Hesson revealed that he was upset with the handshake snub from Team India.
“We wanted to shake hands but disappointed that the opposition didn’t do that. Disappointed with the way we played, but we wanted to shake hands,” Hesson said. “Salman not coming for the post-match presentation was cause and effect after what happened,” he added.
India vs Pak, Asia Cup 2025:
Batting first, Pakistan scored 127/9 runs in 20 overs. Kuldeep Yadav led India’s bowling with three wickets. Axar Patel and Jasprit Bumrah took two wickets each, while Varun Chakaravarthy and Hardik Pandya claimed one apiece.
Indian chased down the target in just 15.5 overs, finishing at 131/3. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav scored 47, Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma contributed with 31 each. Pakistan’s Saim Ayub picked up three wickets.