Kamal Ghorui
The question of handshake hung over the pre-match press conferences on Saturday as India captain Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha declined to confirm whether their teams would shake hands before or after Sunday’s T20 World Cup clash in Colombo.“Wait for 24 hours,” said Suryakumar with a grin.“Wait till tomorrow,” echoed his counterpart.
India had beaten Pakistan three times in the Asia Cup held after the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, including the September 28 final in Dubai. On those occasions, India did not shake hands with Pakistan before or after the matches.When asked about the handshake issue on Saturday’s press conference, Suryakumar said, “Now wait for 24 hours for that. Why put so much focus on that? We have come to play cricket. We will play good cricket. We will take all those calls later tomorrow. Wait for it. Eat well and go to sleep.”Agha also avoided a direct reply. “We will see about it tomorrow,” he said at the pre-match press conference on Saturday.However, Agha said the game should be played in the right manner. “Cricket should be played in (right) spirit. My personal opinion may not matter. But cricket should be played according to how it has always been meant to be played. It’s up to them to decide what to do,” he added.Both India and Pakistan have won their first two matches of the tournament. The two teams have played eight times against each other in T20 World Cups history, with the equation 7-1 in India’s favour.
