Following the example set by the men’s team at the Asia Cup, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur did not shake hands with her Pakistani counterpart Fatima Sana during the toss for the Women’s World Cup match in Colombo.
The players were instructed by the BCCI to refrain from shaking hands with Pakistani squad members.
Both captains kept their distance throughout the ceremony, as Mel Jones conducted the toss, that was won by Pakistan who decided to field.
Amanjot Kaur was injured, therefore Renuka Singh was pushed into the starting eleven for India, who have an 11-0 record against Pakistan in the ODI format. Sadaf Shamas replaced Omaima Sohali for Pakistan.
All three of India and Pakistan’s matches at the just finished men’s Asia Cup were played in a hostile environment. Before and after the match, India cricketers did not shake hands with their Pakistani counterparts.
Additionally, winners India declined to accept the Asia Cup trophy from ACC president Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board and a government interior minister with a strong anti-Indian stance.
Following the Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 Indian tourists were shot dead by terrorists supported by Pakistan, tensions between the two neighbors are at an all-time high.
After that, India began a military operation known as “Operation Sindoor” to destroy the infrastructure supporting terrorism on the other side of the border.
Teams:
India Women: Pratika Rawal, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sneh Rana, Renuka Singh Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani
Pakistan Women: Muneeba Ali, Sadaf Shamas, Sidra Amin, Rameen Shamim, Aliya Riaz, Sidra Nawaz (wk), Fatima Sana(c), Natalia Pervaiz, Diana Baig, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal
