The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) clarified that national women's team captain Nigar Sultana’s decision not to shake hands with Indian counterpart Harmanpreet Kaur during the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 semi-final toss was entirely her personal choice.

Sultana’s action mirrors the friction, where Indian captains have refused to shake hands with Pakistani captains since last year’s men’s Asia Cup due to political tensions between the two nations.

However, women's committee chairman Rafiqul Islam Babu distanced the BCB from the action, stating that the board advocates for sports as a unifying force and seeks friendly relations with all nations.

“Of course, it was her own decision (not to shake hands with Harmanpreet),” said Babu, as quoted by Cricbuzz. “We believe sports bring the world together. We want friendly relations with all countries, not just India and so whatever she did was entirely her personal decision.

Bangladesh were knocked out of the ongoing Asia Cup after losing the semi-final to India by 40 runs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Thursday (September 10).

Babu indicated that Nigar Sultana's future as captain will be evaluated following the upcoming Asian Games, alongside a review of team performance and separate misconduct complaints.

“We have discussed the thing (performance and complaint) in total with the board president and since they are in Asian Games we will assess the situation after the conclusion of the games. First, we will see how the team performs at the Asian Games, then decide what needs to be done,” Babu said.

“There are many shortcomings in the team. We have not been able to beat the bigger teams. We played well in the World Cup too but lost because of small mistakes. We are working to make the team stronger and more competitive. After the Asian Games we will decide what can be done,” he concluded.