India and Pakistan are locking horns in the Group A clash in Colombo.
India skipper Suryakumar Yadav and his Pakistan counterpart Salman Ali Agha refrained from shaking hands with each other at the toss ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 Group A clash in Colombo on Sunday (February 15).
Ahead of the marquee fixture, there was a lot of speculations on whether the two rivals would exchange pleasantries, especially after tempers flared during the Asia Cup last year.
As it turned out, the no-handshake policy continued. In fact, the two captains didn't even exchange eye contact, and maintained distance.
Pakistan captain won the toss and elected to bowl first. However, after speaking to the broadcaster, Salman went his own way without acknowledging Suryakumar.
Here’s the video:
During the Asia Cup 2025, Suryakumar and his men refrained from shaking hands with their Pakistani counterparts as the games were played amidst heightened tensions between two nations following the Pahalgam terror attack and retaliatory Operation Sindoor.
The arch-rivals faced each other thrice in the continental event and India emerged victorious on all occasions, including the title clash. In all three meetings, the Men in Blue refused to shake hands and exchange post-match pleasantries with the Pakistan players, who also engaged in provocative gestures on the field.
The two teams are clashing for the first time since the high-voltage Asia Cup final las September. The political tensions nearly derailed today’s encounter. Just a week before the tournament, Pakistan’s government announced a boycott of the India match, only to reverse the decision after an ICC delegation went to Lahore to discuss the matter with the PCB officials.
India (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah
Pakistan (Playing XI): Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Agha(c), Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz, Usman Khan(w), Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Usman Tariq