Team India did not shake hands with their opponents after the win against Pakistan last week (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)

As India and Pakistan prepare to meet again in the Asia Cup Super Four clash on Sunday, Virat Kohli’s childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma has weighed in on the off-field controversies that have dominated headlines. India had beaten Pakistan by seven wickets in the group stage, chasing down 128 with ease after Kuldeep Yadav’s 3/18 held the opposition to 127/9. However, the post-match scenes, with Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube walking off without shaking hands, became a bigger talking point than the cricket itself.

Sharma believes Pakistan are unnecessarily fixating on the issue. “The Pakistan team should focus on cricket rather than making an issue of Indian players not shaking hands with them. There is no use of all this, they made such a big deal out of it. The charm of the India-Pakistan clash lessens because of these things,” he told ANI.Also See: India vs Pakistan Live Score, Asia Cup 2025 According to him, the cricketing gap between the two sides has only widened. “There used to be so much hype about these matches across both sides, but there is no competition between India and Pakistan, India is way better than them. Even Bangladesh and Sri Lanka look way better than Pakistan,” Sharma said. Speaking tactics, he suggested India’s best approach is to bat first. “If India bats first, Pakistan will go on the back foot because they are not considered great chasers,” he observed. The coach also highlighted the form of young opener Abhishek Sharma, who has been giving India quick starts. “Abhishek has this style, he has been batting really well and dominates right from the start. All teams plan things… but it all depends on execution and how much Abhishek can counter them,” Sharma added.

India will again rely on their spin attack of Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel to replicate their previous success in Dubai, while Pakistan’s spinners Mohammed Nawaz and Abrar Ahmed will try their best to ruin India’s plans.