The saga of the ‘no-handshake’ row continues. Now, the attention was been grabbed by a mute video released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The video in question shows the captain of the team, Salman Ali Agha, head coach Mike Hesson, and a PCB official having a chat with the match referee, Andy Pycroft.
It all stems back to the group A match of the Asia Cup 2025 between India and Pakistan. On Septembr 14, 2025, the two teams faced each other for the first time after the recent geopolitical tension following the tragic Pahalgam incident. The Asia Cup being a multinational tournament, the Indian team played the game despite boycott calls from a majority of their population. However, the team took a stand in its own unique way.
Pakistan played the UAE match despite boycott threats
During the toss, Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav avoided eye contact or a handshake with his counterpart. The team persisted with the same move after their emphatic win in the game. While Pakistan waited to shake hands with the Indian team, no Indian player showed an interest in repeating the gesture. Even clips of Surya closing the team dressing room doors also went viral. In what seemed a reply to this move, Salman Ali Agha did not attend the post-match presentation ceremony.
{{/usCountry}}During the toss, Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav avoided eye contact or a handshake with his counterpart. The team persisted with the same move after their emphatic win in the game. While Pakistan waited to shake hands with the Indian team, no Indian player showed an interest in repeating the gesture. Even clips of Surya closing the team dressing room doors also went viral. In what seemed a reply to this move, Salman Ali Agha did not attend the post-match presentation ceremony.
{{/usCountry}}Things started heating up even more post this. The Pakistan management lodged an official complaint against Team India, saying not shaking hands is against the spirit of the game. They even gave warnings of boycotting the tournament if the match referee for the game, Andy Pycroft, was not removed from their matches. It boiled down to a stage where the PAK vs UAE match had to be delayed by an hour following the unwillingness of the Men in Green to play the match.
The posting of the video by PCB immediately after this came with the suggestion that Pycroft was apologizing to the concerned members of the team. However, instead of being taken seriously, the video earned sarcastic comments and trolls from the common fans. The original video was reposted on social media by some Pakistani cricket fans, and this induced their Indian counterparts to jump in. Most of the comments and trolls called out the naivety of the PCB in the suggestion they tried to leave by posting a ‘Muted’ video.