Pakistan Planning 'Political Message' After Asia Cup Super 4 Clash Against India: Report

Pakistan are planning to deliver a political message in case they win their Asia Cup 2025 Super Four clash against India on Sunday, according to a report by RevSportz. The report claimed that India will stick to their no-handshake policy with Pakistan but in case of a win, Pakistan may come up with a gesture of their own. There has been no official communication regarding the planned move. NDTV also could not independently verify the authenticity of the claim. The Salman Ali Agha-led Pakistan was paid a surprise visit by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Saturday and he was seen having conversations with the players.

The report said that Naqvi's visit led to an abrupt end of Pakistan's net sessions and he was seen having an animated chat with coach Mike Hesson. Skipper Agha also joined the conversation after some time.

In their previous Asia Cup 2025 encounter, India captain Suryakumar Yadav did not shake hands with his Pakistan counterpart. After India won the match by 7 wickets, Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube directly made their way to the dressing room and did not shake hands with the Pakistan players on the field.

Pakistan were left fuming and sulking with the entire incident as Agha decided to skip the post-match presentation. PCB went on to lodge a complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC) against match referee Andy Pycroft for his role in the incident and asked for his removal from the competition.

The request from PCB was, however, rejected on two occasions and although reports claimed that Pakistan threatened to boycott their match against UAE, the game was played after an hour's delay. Pycroft had a conversation with the Pakistan officials and apologised for the 'miscommunication' in the entire incident, claimed the PCB. However, sources told NDTV, it was not an apology but just an expression of regret.

The controversy did not stop there as the PCB faced backlash over a leaked video of Pycroft's meeting. The video surfaced online and they were accused by the ICC of "multiple breaches" of protocol.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Agha Salman Suryakumar Yadav International Cricket Council Asia Cup 2025 Cricket