Former Indian Cricketer Suresh Raina Claims Indian Players Were Forced To Play Pakistan In Asia Cup 2025

Mumbai: The controversy over the India-Pakistan face-off on Sunday in Dubai ended in a win but the controversy simply refuses to die down and in fact may extend to other cricketing faceoffs with Pakistan depending on how the matches unfold.

About The Controversy

On Monday, the refusal to shake hands with the opposing team, a sporting courtesy, snowballed after a wicket fell in Pakistan, that of a sports administrator. Pakistan also lodged a formal complaint. More significantly, comments by former India cricketer Suresh Raina to a news outlet where he made explosive revelations that none of the Indian players were keen on playing in the Asia Cup but were compelled due to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)’s decision opened a fresh can of worms with the internet going into a frenzy .

Former Indian Cricketer Suresh Raina's Statement

“I know one thing for sure. If you personally ask the players, none of them wants to play the Asia Cup. In a way, they are forced because the BCCI has agreed to it. I have heard that India are playing against Pakistan, but I can also say for a fact that if Suryakumar Yadav and his players are asked about their personal opinions about playing Pakistan, they would have said no. None of them wanted to play,” Raina added.

India skipper Suryakumar Yadav, who had dedicated the win to the victims of the Pahalgam attack and the armed forces, stated after the victory against Pakistan that the team had completely blocked out the outside noise to focus on the match. The tension around the game could be gauged from Suryakumar’s refusal to shake hands with his Pakistani counterpart Salman Ali Agha at the toss and the entire Indian contingent not engaging in the customary post-match handshakes with the Pakistan players which has now stirred a huge controversy.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President, stated they had lodged an official complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the immediate removal of match referee Andy Pycroft from the Asia Cup. The PCB believes that Pycroft had asked the two captains not to shake hands at the time of the toss.

The developments are perhaps unprecedented as it’s hard to remember a match where the Indian and Pakistani captains had not engaged in customary handshakes. At the height of the Kargil War in 1999, India and Pakistan had played their famous match at Old Trafford which the Mohammad Azharuddin-led side won and at the toss of that game Azharuddin had shaken hands with Pakistan counterpart Wasim Akram. Such is the mood of the present times with the wounds of Pahalgam still fresh that Indian fans have vented their frustration out on social media too against playing matches with Pakistan.

The same situation is expected to present itself again, with India likely to take on Pakistan on September 21st when they play their Super Fours game against the arch-rivals, and if the two teams make it to the final, there could be a third face-off too. Handshakes, tensions between players, and drama on the field could all be on show given the current scenario. At the Pakistani end, there was a meltdown of sorts with PCB chairman Naqvi sacking Usman Wahla, PCB’s Director of International Operations, for his failure to safeguard Pakistan’s position in such matters of sportsmanship as he felt Wahla should have flagged the issue before the match itself.

Meanwhile, Modi congratulated the Indian women’s hockey team on their silver-medal-winning performance at the women’s Asia Cup and the gold medal-winning performances of two women boxers, Jaismine Lamboria and Minakshi Hooda, at the 2025 World Boxing Championships, but stopped short of congratulating the Indian cricket team’s triumph against Pakistan on Sunday.