Following the example set by the Indian men’s cricket team during the Asia Cup in Dubai, Harmanpreet Kaur’s team will likewise not shake hands with Pakistani players during their Women’s World Cup match in Colombo on October 5.
As Indo-Pak cricket relations were at their lowest point, tensions increased when Mohsin Naqvi, the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), refused to hand over Suryakumar Yadav the winner’s trophy in Dubai. The Indian men’s team had previously refused to accept the trophy from a Pakistani representative.
“The BCCI is aligned with the government and there will be no customary handshake at the toss, no photo-shoot with the match referee, and no end-of-game handshakes. The policy followed by the men will also be implemented by the women,” a PTI report quoted a senior BCCI source as saying on conditions of anonymity.
The presentation of the toss in Colombo will also be highly followed, and it is anticipated that a former player or commentator from a neutral country will do so.
The mood will be very different from the 2022 ODI World Cup in New Zealand, where pictures of Indian players swooning over Bismah Maroof’s baby daughter went viral.
This time, Harmanpreet Kaur and Pakistan captain Fatima Sana are expected to forgo even the customary pleasantries.
