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BCCI Says No Assurance of India-Pakistan Handshakes at Women’s World Cup
Tensions spill into women’s cricket: BCCI says no guarantee Indian & Pakistani players will shake hands at the World Cup. PCB chief slams “cheap propaganda” by Indian media.
MH
by Muhammad Hashir
2025-10-02
BCCI Says No Assurance of India-Pakistan Handshakes at Women’s World Cup

As Pakistan’s women’s team begins its World Cup campaign, the spotlight is firmly on its upcoming clash against India amid rising political and sporting tensions between the two countries.

According to a BBC report, a senior Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official stated that there is “no assurance” Indian and Pakistani players will shake hands during their match on Sunday. The comments came after last month’s Asia Cup, where Indian players refused to shake hands with Pakistani counterparts in all three encounters.

The controversy escalated at the Asia Cup final in the UAE when the Indian team refused to accept the winners’ trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Chairman and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi. Reports in Indian media later alleged that Naqvi apologised to the BCCI over the incident — a claim he strongly rejected.

“Indian media thrives on lies, not facts. I have done nothing wrong and I have never apologised to the BCCI nor will I ever do so,” Naqvi said. He dismissed the reports as “fabricated nonsense” and “cheap propaganda,” insisting he had always been ready to present the trophy and was still willing to do so.

Meanwhile, The Indian Express reported that the BCCI had advised India’s women cricketers to avoid handshakes with Pakistan during the World Cup. A BCCI source confirmed, “The team has been informed by the board. The Indian board will stand by its players.”

BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia, speaking to BBC Stumped, said: “India will play that match against Pakistan in Colombo, and all cricket protocols will be followed. Whether there will be handshakes, whether there will be hugging, I cannot assure you of anything at this moment.”

The upcoming fixture will mark the first women’s World Cup clash between the arch-rivals since the latest flare-up in bilateral relations. Earlier this year, tensions spiked after India launched airstrikes in Pakistan over the Pahalgam attack in occupied Kashmir, a crisis that was defused through U.S. intervention.

Cricket, often seen as a unifying sport, is now once again reflecting the strained ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. The absence of a simple handshake could underscore just how deeply politics has seeped into the game.
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