The Board of Management for Cricket in India (BCCI) has formally clarified its place on the handshake coverage for the upcoming India vs Pakistan ICC Girls’s World Cup 2025 conflict. The much-anticipated match might be performed in Colombo on October 5, however not like previous encounters, there might be no customary handshakes or joint crew gestures.
This comes within the wake of the Asia Cup 2025 males’s ultimate, the place the Indian crew not solely refused to shake arms with their Pakistani counterparts but additionally declined to just accept the trophy from Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi. Following that precedent, the BCCI has prolonged the identical method to the ladies’s aspect.
No handshakes, no photograph Periods, no interplay
Talking on the matter, BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia shunned giving a direct reply on handshakes however emphasised that “India’s diplomatic and sporting relationship with Pakistan stays unchanged and tense.”
In accordance with a number of studies, the ladies’s crew has been knowledgeable that:
- There might be no handshake on the toss.
- No photograph session with the match referee will happen.
- No end-of-match handshakes might be noticed.
Whereas MCC cricketing protocols might be adopted, the absence of those conventional gestures is now official coverage for each males’s and girls’s groups.
The choice comes towards the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror assault and Operation Sindoor, each of which have escalated tensions between the 2 international locations. The BCCI’s stance aligns with the Indian authorities’s diplomatic place, additional underlining how politics and cricket stay deeply intertwined within the India-Pakistan rivalry.
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur has chosen to not wade into the controversy, stating that her crew’s focus stays firmly on on-field efficiency. Nevertheless, the distinction with earlier encounters – such because the 2022 ODI World Cup in New Zealand, the place each groups confirmed heat and camaraderie – highlights how dramatically the ambiance has modified.
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India vs Pakistan: Cricketing world awaits a high-voltage contest
The affirmation of a no-handshake coverage provides one other layer of depth to what’s already some of the high-voltage fixtures in world cricket. With politics shaping sporting protocol, the India vs Pakistan Girls’s World Cup 2025 conflict is about to be remembered as a lot for off-field symbolism as for on-field motion.
For followers worldwide, the India vs Pakistan contest in Colombo is not going to simply be a sport, will probably be a check of cricketing focus within the shadow of strained bilateral ties.
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This text was first printed at WomenCricket.com, a Cricket Instances firm.