TimesofIndia.com in Dubai: Despite being a one-sided contest filled with standout individual performances, the India–Pakistan clash at the Dubai International Stadium may still go down as the tournament’s most talked-about game — but for reasons beyond cricket. By Monday morning, the ‘handshake-gate’ will dominate the popular narrative on social media feeds and airwaves, and be a hot topic of conversation at water coolers and coffee machines in schools and offices. The cast of characters — Team India captain Suryakumar Yadav, his counterpart Salman Ali Agha, Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson, and match referee Andy Pycroft — were all involved in the drama. As is cricket’s longstanding tradition, the players usually “shake hands and make up” after the game. They do it for the sake of sportsmanship. However, the Indian cricket players were not in a mood to forgive and forget, and instead took a stand for all the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack. Team India captain Suryakumar Yadav posted on Instagram: “This win is dedicated to the armed forces of India and the victims of the Pahalgam attack. Jai Hind.”
Suryakumar Yadav’s Instagram post
Surya’s deputy Shubman Gill echoed his skipper’s sentiments. He wrote on Instagram: “Today’s win is dedicated to the victims of Pahalgam and to our brave armed forces who continue to safeguard us. The spirit of India lives on both on and off the field. Jai Hind.” Interestingly, at the start of the tournament, Team India captain Suryakumar Yadav, during the captains’ press conference, shook hands with Mohsin Naqvi, chief of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC), president of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), and also Pakistan’s Federal Interior Minister. But he refused to shake hands with his counterpart Salman Ali Agha — first at the toss and later at the end of the match. Suryakumar hit the winning six to finish the game, walked towards batting partner Shivam Dube, shook his hand, and then walked off, leaving the Pakistani players in the middle of the ground. The Pakistan team, led by Salman Ali Agha, stood in the middle for a couple of minutes before starting to walk back to their dressing room. Seeing his players head back, Pakistan coach Mike Hesson raced towards Team India’s dressing room, but by then the doors were shut. A visibly upset Hesson was seen having a long conversation with match referee Andy Pycroft. After standing there for four to five minutes, a frustrated Hesson walked back towards the pitch. In response, Salman Ali Agha skipped the post-match presentation in protest against the behaviour of the Indian team, as the ceremony host was also an Indian — former India captain and coach Ravi Shastri. India captain Suryakumar Yadav defended the snub in his post-match press conference, saying that the team was “aligned with the government and the Board of Control for Cricket in India” in not shaking hands with the Pakistan team. “We stand with the victims and families of the Pahalgam terror attack and we express our solidarity,” Suryakumar said. “We want to dedicate today’s win to the armed forces.” Pakistan’s head coach Mike Hesson told reporters he was “disappointed” with the Indian team’s decision. “We were ready to shake hands at the end of the game,” the former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) coach said. “We are disappointed that the opposition did not do that. We went over there and they had already gone to the changing room, so that was obviously a disappointing way to finish the match.” Team India head coach, while talking to the broadcasters, hailed the team’s stand. “The match was important for us because as a team we wanted to show our solidarity to the families of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack, for everything they have gone through. More importantly, we want to thank our armed forces for their successful Operation Sindoor, and I’m sure we will try and make our country proud and happy,” Gambhir told Sony Sports Network. It was the first time that the arch-rivals faced off in a cricket match since the Pahalgam terror attacks earlier this year in April. TimesofIndia.com had reported that the boycott trend on social media was discussed by the players in the team meeting, which was later confirmed by assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate at the press conference. “We obviously are aware of the sentiments and the strong feelings. And Gauti’s (coach Gautam Gambhir’s) message has just been very professional, about not worrying about things that are not in our control,” he had said. However, at the end of the game Team India players didn’t take their coach’s advice of being “professional” to heart and instead did the opposite. And yes, India did win the match comprehensively by seven wickets and cemented their place in the Super Four, where they might again face Pakistan.
