Gautam Gambhir Hit With 'Hypocrite' Jibe In Asia Cup 'Handshake' Row: "Triggered Him..."

Former Indian cricket team batter Manoj Tiwary took aim at head coach Gautam Gambhir with a "hypocrite" jibe over the ongoing handshake controversy during the Asia Cup 2025. India captain Suryakumar Yadav did not shake hands with his Pakistan counterpart Salman Ali Agha after the toss, and following India's seven-wicket win, the Indian players also refrained from shaking hands with the Pakistan cricketers. Suryakumar later dedicated the win to the armed forces and expressed solidarity with the families of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack.

Tiwary commented that, considering Gambhir's past statements, the coach might have felt the pressure of being perceived as a hypocrite.

Tiwary further argued that the handshake boycott was not right, especially since India had agreed to play the match in the first place. He noted that Gambhir had previously opposed playing against Pakistan due the rising political tensions between the two teams and speculated that social media backlash may have played a role in the gesture.

"He [Gambhir] was the one saying that we should not play against Pakistan at any given point, until the issues are resolved... I think it was not the right thing to do [not shaking hands]. When you have decided to play the game against Pakistan... and also over there [during the press conference], Surya did shake hands with Salman Agha. So when you've already shaken hands, what message are you trying to send to the people of India?" Tiwary told InsideSport.

"I thought so... there was a trending hashtag as well - 'Boycott Asia Cup'... I thought the head coach might have felt the pressure about being somewhat hypocritical, considering that when he wasn't the head coach, he had made a lot of strong statements that he now can't defend. It might have triggered him to show support to the grieving families," he added.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Suryakumar Yadav Manoj Tiwary Asia Cup 2025 Gautam Gambhir Cricket