After India beat Pakistan by 7 wickets in the Asia Cup 2025 match, a bit of a storm has brewed because the Indian team didn’t shake hands with their Pakistani opponents after the game. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wasn’t too happy and decided to take it up with the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).
To clear the air, a top official at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said that not shaking hands wasn’t a big deal. According to this official who wanted to remain anonymous, shaking hands is just a friendly thing to do, not something the rule book demands.
This official said India hadn’t broken any rules. They pointed out that with the political situation between India and Pakistan, it’s understandable if the Indian players aren’t in a hurry to shake hands or chat with the Pakistani team. If you look at the rules, there’s nothing that says you have to shake hands. It’s just a nice thing to do, a tradition more than a rule, the BCCI official told PTI. They added that since there’s no rule about it, the Indian team isn’t obligated to shake hands, especially with a team they’ve had a bad blood with in the past.
On top of this, the PCB isn’t happy with how match referee Andy Pycroft handled things and wants him removed from the Asia Cup immediately. PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi posted on ‘X’ that they’ve complained to the ICC about Pycroft not following the Code of Conduct and the Spirit of Cricket. They’re demanding his immediate removal from the tournament.
