COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha says it is up to India’s players to decide if they will shake hands with his team before and after Sunday’s much-anticipated T20 World Cup clash.
Political and diplomatic tensions between the two nations have often boiled over on to the cricket field. The game in Colombo will be the first time they have met since last year’s acrimonious Asia Cup tournament in the United Arab Emirates.
Pakistan’s government threatened a boycott of the fixture after the International Cricket Council kicked Bangladesh out of the World Cup for refusing to play matches in India, citing security concerns.
Pakistan only agreed to play after intense discussions with the ICC. The fixture is the major revenue earner for the ICC.
“The game should be played in real spirit, the way it has been played since it started. The rest is up to them (India), what they want to do,” Agha told reporters on Saturday about the possibility of the players shaking hands.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav, for his part, was non-committal.
“Why are you highlighting that?” Suryakumar asked reporters. “We are here to play cricket. We will play good cricket. We will take all those calls tomorrow. We will see tomorrow.”
Political and military tensions have meant the two teams have not played a bilateral series for years.
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