Three centuries ago, the British introduced India to two seemingly unrelated legacies — cricket, and the handshake. And over the past three months, the Indian cricket team has intertwined them in ways never seen before.
Discourse — passionate, mind you — around handshakes began in July when the Indian Test team declined England’s proffered handshakes. A second instalment saw the T20I team not shaking hands with their Pakistani counterparts, following a comfortable 7-wicket triumph in the 2025 Asia Cup on Sunday (14 September).
For all the moralising around sportsmanship, India was right to choose restraint on both occasions.
More About The Statement Than The Win
It is a cliché to claim that every match holds equal weight. It is also a lie. While all matches are equal, some are more equal than others, especially if it is laced with geopolitics that run on nationalistic fervour. Think of Cuba-USA in baseball, England-Germany in football, and in cricket, of course, India-Pakistan.
For players, such contests are unique theatres to immortalise a career. In its grandiloquent packaging, a decent performance could coerce a naïve and unimaginative copy editor at a half-decent newspaper to deploy a headline older than time: A Star is Born.
There were no such headlines today. For, there was nothing grandiloquent about yesterday.
There will be celebrations, indeed, but restrained. There will be confabs at every corner of every road, but not specifically centered around how Suryakumar Yadav batted in the game. Instead, on what he had to say after it.
The Events Of 14 September
A week ago, Yadav found himself as — be it for a fleeting moment — the singular target of an orchestrated attack. At the captains’ press conference, he was seen shaking hands with Pakistan’s skipper Salman Ali Agha, and the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi, who doubles up as a Pakistani politician. At the time, it was a matter of circumstance rather than a conscious decision.
Yesterday, though, a conscious decision was taken. The Indian captain decided to forego the ritual entirely. On a match that lacked fervour, he chose against formalities. The decision was conveyed to the team, who agreed upon a unified, unequivocal stance.
And hence, match referee Andy Pycroft, who was made privy to India’s decision, requested the Pakistan captain not to shake hands at the toss. During the game, Indian batters Yadav and Shivam Dube were seen making a swift exit the moment they had chased down a target of 128 runs. That was not all, however, as once done with the muted celebrations, India’s dressing room was locked as well, preventing any intrusion.
Did India let the crusaders of ‘sportsman spirit’ down? Perhaps. But was that even on the agenda in a match like yesterday’s?
Captain Yadav stated:
We took a call as we came here to only play. We gave a proper reply. We are aligned with BCCI and government. Few things are ahead of sportsman spirit. We stand with all victims of Pahalgam terror attack and dedicate it to armed forces who took part in Operation Sindoor.Suryakumar Yadav
Sure, the Pakistani camp was left infuriated, so much so that Salman Ali Agha did not even turn up for the post-match press conference. Coach Mike Hesson lamented:
We wanted to shake hands but disappointed that the opposition didn’t do that. Also disappointed with the way we played. Salman not coming for post-match presentation was cause and effect after what happened.Mike Hesson
The Pakistan Cricket Board even launched a formal protest against Pycroft.
Manager Naveed Akram Cheema has registered a formal protest against the match referee's behaviour. Match referee requested the captains not to shake hands during the toss.Pakistan Cricket Board
What Other Option Did The Indian Cricketers Have?
Could the Indian camp have carried themselves in a more dignified manner?
Even if they wanted to, their avenues were limited. The players were aware of the boycott calls. They were aware of the Pahalgam victims’ families pleading not to play against Pakistan, the politicians using a sporting event to promulgate their agenda, and the primetime news anchors inciting animosity against India’s legends — from Sachin Tendulkar to Sourav Ganguly — for not making a statement. The cricketers’ silence was weaponised.
The players did make a statement. Perhaps the situation could have been avoided, had the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) withdrew India’s participation for the tournament. Prima facie, the multi-nation tournament appears weak, for India had previously boycotted such tournaments — including Asia Cup — owing to political tensions and strained relationships. There is no dearth of global precedence either — Iran and Israel, Serbia and Kosovo, so on and so forth.
Whether the public exasperation was justified leads to another debate. What cannot be debated is the unjust indignation against the players before the match, who were reduced to mere pawns and were left hung out to dry.
The Captain's Clarification
It would not have been out of the ordinary to not hear anything about Pahalgam. Rather, it would have been par for the course if political discourse was entirely avoided during the game.
But India, led by Suryakumar Yadav, took a stand and made a statement.
We stand by the victims of the families of Pahalgam terror attack. We express our solidarity. Want to dedicate the win to all our armed forces who showed a lot of bravery. Hope they continue to inspire us all and we give them more reasons on the ground whenever we get an opportunity to put a smile on their face.Suryakumar Yadav
Pakistan Might've Forgotten
The lack of handshakes has triggered pandemonium in Pakistan. Shoaib Akhtar called it heartbreaking, while Kamran Akmal claimed the Indian players were pressurised into not shaking hands.
The embarrassment was palpable. India’s stance, though, was aimed not at their counterparts, but to establish that they are treating the game only as a professional commitment, with no room for amity or cordiality.
Can they be blamed, when figures like Shahid Afridi have stoked animosity with inflammatory remarks, while even active players such as Faheem Ashraf and Sajid Khan have posted distasteful images online. Against that backdrop, India’s silence through omission spoke louder than any handshake ever could.
Perhaps, the Pakistani cricketers cannot be faulted for their anger over India’s antics. Perhaps, the game should not have been organised in the first place. Among the many could have beens, however, don’t disparage what was — a bunch of individuals, rendered resistless and helpless, taking a stand when the powers that be did not.