BCCI Tells India Women to Skip Handshakes With Pakistan at Women’s World Cup 2025

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has asked the Indian women’s team to avoid handshakes with Pakistan players during the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025. The directive was communicated before the squad left for Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

India Women opened their campaign with a win over Sri Lanka in Guwahati and will next face Pakistan in their second group match, which will be played in Sri Lanka. The two teams are only meeting at neutral venues in this tournament.

This clash will also mark the fourth straight Sunday of an India-Pakistan contest, following the recent Asia Cup that was filled with political undertones. During that event, Indian players openly referred to the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor in PoK while dedicating performances to the armed forces.

The Asia Cup final in Dubai added to the tension. India refused to accept the winners’ trophy from Asian Cricket Council chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s interior minister and PCB chief. BCCI later accused Naqvi of removing the trophy altogether and raised the matter in an ACC meeting, which Indian delegates walked out of midway.

Naqvi denied apologising and said he was prepared to hand over the trophy, but only from the ACC office. His posts on the controversy have since been withheld from viewing in India.

With India Women now carrying forward the no-handshake directive, the Guwahati win sets the stage for a fiery second clash against Pakistan, where cricket is once again being played under the shadow of political tension.