Women's Asia Cup 2026: 'Will Speak About It When We Play That Game,' Says Amol Muzumdar On Handshake With Pakistan

Dubai, August 29, 2026: India's head coach Amol Muzumdar refused to comment on the handshake policy for their upcoming Women's Asia Cup match against Pakistan on September 5, stating that the team's sole focus is on performing well in their opener against Thailand on Sunday. "Look, we try to play the best cricket on the ground and off the field stuff, we don't focus on it.

We try to play the best cricket that we know on that particular day and we will speak about this when we play that game. But at the moment, we are focusing on tomorrow's game. One game at a time," Muzumdar said during a pre-match press conference.

The Indian cricket teams have maintained a strict no-handshake policy with Pakistani opposition since September 2025, following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025. This rule was imposed after the Indian men's team avoided handshakes with Pakistan during the Men's Asia Cup due to security concerns. The Indian women's team followed the same protocol during their Women's ODI World Cup match against Pakistan in October 2025, the Men's Rising Stars Asia Cup in November 2025, and the Under-19 Asia Cup, Under-19 World Cup, and Men's T20 World Cup matches in 2025 and 2026.

In the Women's T20 World Cup clash in Birmingham on June 2026, Harmanpreet Kaur's team also refrained from shaking hands with the Pakistani players at the Dubai International Stadium.