The Indian cricketers’ refusal to shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts following an Asia Cup match in Dubai had escalated into a significant controversy. An angry PCB demanded the dismissal of match referee Andy Pycroft on Monday, blaming him for the disaster that has sparked new hostilities between the two bitter rivals.
Following Sunday’s seven-wicket victory, India captain Suryakumar Yadav defended his team’s stance, saying it was intended to express solidarity with the families of the Pahalgam terror tragedy, in which 26 people were shot dead by terrorists supported by Pakistan.
This came after the team faced harsh criticism for taking on the more established opponents. The entire situation infuriated the Pakistan Cricket Board, which has now complained to the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and asked the ICC to step in.
By the way, India’s Jay Shah is in charge of the ICC, while Mohsin Naqvi, the president of the PCB, is currently in charge of the ACC. However, the Asia Cup is run by the ACC and is not an ICC event.
“The PCB has lodged a complaint with the ICC regarding violations by the Match Referee of the ICC Code of Conduct and the MCC Laws pertaining to the Spirit of Cricket. The PCB has demanded an immediate removal of the Match Referee from the Asia Cup,” Naqvi said on ‘X’.
In a previous statement, the PCB said that Pycroft “asked (Pakistan) captain Salman Ali Agha, at the time of the toss, not to shake hands with his Indian counterpart.”
In a protest to the ACC, Pakistan team manager Naved Cheema claims that Pycroft insisted that the two captains not exchange team sheets, as is customary.
The BCCI has yet to respond to the PCB’s statements, but sources confirm that if India reach the final on September 28, the players will not share the presentation stage with Naqvi, who is set to present the winner’s trophy as ACC president.
Both teams steered clear of each other during the customary warm-up, and at the toss, the opposing captains handed their respective team sheets to Pycroft.
“Team manager Naveed Cheema lodged a strong protest against Indian players’ behaviour of not shaking hands. It was deemed as unsporting and against the sport of the game. As a protest we did not send our captain to the post match ceremony,” read a PCB statement issued earlier.
The apolitical stance that players typically take on Pakistan contrasted sharply with India’s stance, which will be discussed and argued for some time to come.
“Together, we came here, we took a call and I feel we came here just to play the game. I think we gave the proper reply,” Suryakumar replied when asked about the stance taken by his team.
When a Pakistani journalist asked if the refusal to shake hands with opposition players after the seven-wicket victory was “politically motivated,” the captain responded: “I feel few things, few things in life are ahead of sportsman’s spirit also. We stand with victims of Pahalgam terror attack and dedicate this victory to our Armed Forces.”
