Pakistan Withholds Captain Salman Ali Agha From Post-Match Presentation Over India’s Handshake Boycott

India and Pakistan hold bold stances against each other after their marquee clash at the 2025 Asia Cup.

Pakistan Withholds Captain Salman Ali Agha From Post-Match Presentation Over India’s Handshake Boycott

Salman Ali Agha and Suryakumar Yadav (Image via ACC/X)

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The Asia Cup clash between India and Pakistan was not short on drama. The match on the field may not have gone down to the wire with India decimating Pakistan rather easily by 7 wickets, however, the proceedings that took place post India’s win has been the most talked about topic lately.

Suryakumar Yadav hit the winning runs against spinner Sufiyan Muqeem. As Yadav struck the ball into the stands, he and partner Shivam Dube walked straight into the dressing room without shaking hands with the Pakistan team, who were out there waiting to congratulate their opponents.

Live images also showed that the Indian team shook hands amongst themselves and quickly entered the dressing room, closing the door behind them. In reply to this behavior from the Indian team, Pakistan too responded in its own way.

Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha did not come to the post match presentation for a chat with Ravi Shastri, and a statement from the Pakistan Cricket Board later clarified this move.

Team manager Naveed Cheema lodged a strong protest against Indian players behavior of not shaking hands. It was deemed as unsporting and against the spirit of the game. As a protest we did not send our captain to the post-match ceremony.

A statement from PCB official via CricBuzz

The Pakistan cricket team and its management weren’t impressed with India’s gesture after the match and decided to protest against it. This match was played under very different circumstances, with a lot of emotional baggage for both sides.

Boycott calls had engulfed this match for a long time before the BCCI clarified that India has to respect the other nations taking part and play the event. Late drama like this has added a different spice to this contest.

As the Asia Cup usually pans out, both the teams might once again meet each other next Sunday for a battle of the Super 4s. The fans will eagerly be waiting for statements from both captains prior to the match as currently the situation is extremely fragile.

Mike Hesson deems India’s post-match no handshake as ‘disappointing’

Mike Hesson, who recently took over the coaching of Pakistan, expressed his thoughts after his first ever India vs. Pakistan match. In the post-match press conference, Hesson gave his verdict on the no-handshake policy that India applied to the match.

Mike Hesson expresses disappointment that India didn't shake hands.
Mike Hesson (Image via screengrab)

We wanted to shake hands but disappointed that the opposition didn’t do that. Also disappointed with the way we played. Pakistan captain Salman not coming for post-match presentation was cause and effect after what happened.

Mike Hesson said

Hesson was clearly disappointed with his team’s performance. Batting first, Pakistan could only stack up 127 runs for the loss of 9 wickets. India was up to the task. After a great performance by the bowling unit, the batters stepped up in reply and chased down the target rather comfortably.

The New Zealand-born coach has now spent over 6 months with the Pakistan team. In his short tenure so far, he has witnessed series wins against the West Indies, Bangladesh and also the recently concluded tri nation series with UAE and Afghanistan.

However, these teams are not often ranked among the best teams in the world. A match against India was his first big assignment. In many ways, this match would have given Hesson a clue of where his team stands when it comes to the best in world cricket.

Hesson, who is an experienced coach and has coached franchises in the IPL, will look to turn the tide around in this Pakistan camp and create some magic with the set of players he has. Pakistan will look to bounce back on the coming Sunday, however, with the kind of dominance India showed in the first match, expecting a different outcome in the second clash will be betting against the popular odds.

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