India and Pakistan are currently locking horns in the Asia Cup 2025 group-stage fixture at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
However, the pre-match atmosphere appeared quite tense. At the toss, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan’s Salman Ali Agha walked out together but the former pointedly refused to shake hands or acknowledge his counterpart.
The Men in Green won the toss and opted to bat first. However, what caught everyone’s attention was the lack of interaction between the two captains, even as they spoke to presenter Ravi Shastri.
The body language of the captains was certainly a reflection of the tension surrounding the fixture between the bitter rivals.
Here’s the video:
Speaking at the toss, Pakistan skipper Agha said, “Going to bat first. We’ve been playing good cricket, very excited. Looks like a slow wicket. Just want to bat first and put runs on the board. Same side. Have been here for 20-odd days and are used to the conditions."
On the other hand, Suryakumar said, “We were looking to bowl first, happy with it. We played just one strip away, was a nice wicket and better to bat on in the night. It’s humid so hoping for some dew. Same team," said Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav.”
India (XI): Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Pakistan (XI): Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Abrar Ahmed.
