Exactly a week after the men’s T20 Asia Cup final, India and Pakistan’s women’s teams are set to face each other during the ICC Women’s World Cup on Sunday. With Pakistan having already refused to travel to India for the quadrennial event citing security reasons, which ultimately resulted in their fixtures being played in Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium, all the attention now turns towards that game which will be played in a similar cloud of tensions hovering above.
With this being an ICC event, there will be protocols in play, where both captains usually shake their hands at the toss. Even at the end of the game, players and support staff from both teams are required to shake hands. According to sources in the BCCI, it is understood that Harmanpreet Kaur & Co haven’t been given any instructions with regards to it and a clear picture could only emerge closer to the game. “It is an ICC event, so there will be protocols in place, which the team will keep in mind,” an official in the know of things said.
With only a few days left for Harmanpreet and Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana to walk out for the toss at the R Premadasa Stadium, especially at an event of the stature of the World Cup, attention is bound to be back on the players from the two countries.
India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav, left, and Pakistan’s captain Salman Agha stand for the coin toss of the Asia Cup cricket final between India and Pakistan at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
On social media, things have already begun heating up. While Haris Rauf’s airplane gestures went viral, images of Fatima doing something similar during a recent ODI against South Africa, just two days after the tense Super 4s clash at the Asia Cup, have made the headlines too. “We should call our women’s team back. We should not play cricket with them (in the World Cup). We should take a stand,” former Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal told ARY News.
A couple of former Indian cricketers weighed in on how Harmanpreet would have to approach this situation. “The conflict situation and reality of the day, no doubt, will bring stress to the players other than the game itself because of the politics brought into the game. But I will back Team India and Harman in whatever they choose to do – not shake hands, shake hands, hug, not talk,” Shobha Pandit, who played three ODIs in the 1978 World Cup told The Indian Express. “Having said that, Pakistan team are also human beings, they play the same game as we do, so maintain restraint and respect.”
Sandhya Agarwal, who played 13 Tests and 21 ODIs for India from 1984 to 1995, wanted Harmanpreet to follow in Suryakumar’s footsteps. “It is expected to be the same situation as the men’s team. And Harman should face Pakistan exactly like Surya did. But I don’t look at it as any additional pressure,” she said.
Harmanpreet was asked about it at the Captains’ press meet, which happened in two different venues, Bengaluru and Colombo, evidently to avoid India and Pakistan in the same room; unlike the Asia Cup pre-event meet a few weeks ago. She, of course, played it coy. “Well, we can only control one thing, which is playing cricket on the field and we are not thinking of other things. But in other parts, I have zero control and I don’t even take those things into my mind. We don’t even discuss those things in the dressing room. We are only here to play cricket.”
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Harmanpreet Kaur and teammates Smriti Mandhana and Jemimah Rodrigues were part of the trophy unveiling ceremony for the 2025 Women’s World Cup that India host. (PTI Photo)
After their match in Mount Maunganui in March 2022 at the last edition of the Women’s ODI World Cup, the Indian and Pakistani players produced moments that would capture fans’ attentions. India had won convincingly by 107 runs and once the match ended, cricketers from both teams got together to interact in the dressing rooms, during which a few Indian players spent time with then captain Bismah Maroof’s six-month-old daughter, who was a hit with teams right through the World Cup. Smriti Mandhana even wrote on an Instagram story: “Coming back post pregnancy in 6 months and playing international cricket is so inspiring. Bismah Maroof is setting an example for sportswomen across the globe. Lots of love to baby Fatima from India, and I hope she picks the bat just like you because lefties are special.”
In women’s cricket, India and Pakistan have played each other only in 11 ODIs and 16 T20Is. There have been a few thrillers here and there, but India have been dominant, losing just three T20Is and never in ODIs in matches against Pakistan. After those viral social media images in New Zealand three years back, Pakistan’s Nida Dar had said, “We played very few matches against India. However, whenever we meet each other we always have a good time. Many Indian players are friends with Pakistani players.”
(With inputs from Shivani Naik and Venkata Krishna B)
The postWeek after politically charged Asia Cup final, no clarity whether India, Pakistan players will shake hands during Women’s World Cup fixture | Cricket News appeared first on Indian Express
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