# The Death of the Handshake: How Geopolitics is Cannibalizing the India-Pakistan Rivalry

**By Arjun Mehta**  \nPublished September 6, 2026  \nUpdated September 9, 2026

> When the match ends, the sport is supposed to remain. But between India and Pakistan, the final ball is often just the beginning of a new conflict.

In the traditional architecture of international cricket, the post-match handshake is a non-negotiable ritual—a brief, silent acknowledgment that once the physical combat concludes, the gentlemanly spirit resumes. But at the Dubai International Stadium on September 14, 2025, that architecture crumbled. When the final wicket fell in the high-octane Asia Cup clash, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav did not offer his hand to Pakistan’s Salman Agha. It wasn't a mistake, and it wasn't a lapse in memory. It was a calculated expression of a rivalry that has moved far beyond the boundary ropes.

## The Ghost of Pahalgam

The refusal to shake hands was not an isolated moment of poor etiquette; it was a direct echo of the tectonic political shifts in South Asia. The atmosphere between the two nations has been fundamentally altered by the terrorist atrocity in Pahalgam in April, an incident in the contested Jammu and Kashmir region that left 26 civilians dead. While India alleges the deaths were the work of Pakistani militants, Pakistan denies the claim. The fallout has transformed the cricket pitch into a secondary front for nationalistic fervor.

Suryakumar Yadav’s refusal to engage in the traditional post-match pleasantries was framed not as an insult to the game, but as an act of solidarity.

> 'We stand by the families of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and we express our solidarity,' Yadav stated during his post-match press conference.  'And also the most important thing for me, we want to dedicate today’s win to all our armed forces who showed a lot of bravery.'

This brand of overt political messaging has long been a taboo in the ICC's regulatory framework. Players like Moeen Ali and Usman Khawaja have previously faced sanctions for wearing symbols related to the Gaza crisis, and even MS Dhoni was once told to remove military-insignia wicket-keeping gloves during the 2019 World Cup. Yet, in the current climate, the refusal of the handshake has been met with a conspicuous silence from the ICC, suggesting a shifting landscape where the power of the Indian board and the sheer economic weight of the rivalry may be altering the enforcement of neutrality.

## The $3.1 Billion Paradox

The tension is exacerbated by a staggering economic reality: the India-Pakistan fixture is the most lucrative asset in global sport. For advertisers, an India-v-Pakistan game at a World Cup or Champions Trophy can command rates ten times higher than any other match. This isn't just speculation; it is the engine that underpins the international game. In the 2022 cycle alone, the rights to broadcast ICC events in India netted $3.1 billion out of a global total of roughly $3.5 billion.

This financial gravity is so immense that it has led to what can only be described as administrative subterfuge. To ensure the survival of the global broadcast pie, the ICC has a recurring habit of fixing tournament draws to ensure both giants are placed in the same group. The game is caught in a paradoxical loop: the very hostility that makes the match a diplomatic nightmare is exactly what makes it a financial necessity for nations outside the so-called 'Big Three' who rely on these broadcast shares to fund their own cricket ecosystems.

## Statistical Gaslighting and the '6–0' Gesture

The conflict has also seeped into the rhetoric of the players themselves. Following India's second dominant win in the tournament—bolstered by Abhishek Sharma’s 74 off just 39 balls—Suryakumar Yadav attempted to delegitimize the concept of the 'rivalry' altogether.

> 'I feel that you should stop asking this question on the rivalry. According to me, if two teams play 15–20 matches and if it is 7–7 or 8–7, then that is called a rivalry. But 13–0, 10–1… I don’t know what the stats are. But this is not a rivalry any more.'

This claim of dominance, however, borders on recency bias. While India has enjoyed a period of intense supremacy, the historical record tells a more balanced story: Pakistan has won more games against India across all formats than they have lost, with a tally of 88–78.

Pakistan’s response to the perceived snub was equally combative. Rather than taking the high ground, the reaction from the Pakistani camp was characterized by volatility. Salman Agha declined to attend the post-match press conference, sparking an unseemly dispute with ICC match referee Andy Pycroft. More provocatively, fast bowler Haris Rauf was seen on the boundary making a '6–0' gesture—a visual shorthand reportedly reflecting the number of Indian and Pakistani jets shot down during their recent military skirmish. It was a moment that moved the contest from the realm of sport into the raw, unfiltered space of active conflict.

### The Professional Fallout

For those who view cricket through the lens of sportsmanship, the damage is significant. Pakistan’s coach, Mike Hesson, expressed profound disappointment, noting that while competition is expected, respect is mandatory.

> 'We may compete hard, but we should still respect each other. I was disappointed to see no handshakes after the match,' Hesson remarked.

As the tournament progresses, the central question remains whether the ICC can—or even wants to—reclaim the neutral ground. If the players continue to use the field to score political points, and if the broadcasters continue to profit from the resulting vitriol, the handshake may soon become a relic of a more innocent era of cricket.

## Sources

- [dailymail.com](https://www.dailymail.com/sport/cricket/article-15125109/India-Pakistan-handshake-cricket-future.html) — original
- [venusnails1.com](https://venusnails1.com/gambling/women-ipl-2023/) — original
- [cricketchampionzone.com](https://cricketchampionzone.com/news/india-pakistan-post-match-handshake-narratives-and-diplomacy-angles/) — original
- [rozupdates.com](https://rozupdates.com/blogs/india-players-refuse-handshakes-says-pakistan-coach) — original