The no-handshake policy between India and Pakistan persisted on Sunday as India captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana refrained from shaking hands at the toss before their Group A match in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup at Edgbaston.
This practice has been observed by Indian cricket teams since the Pahalgam terror attack and the subsequent Operation Sindoor conducted by the Armed Forces last year. Indian players have deliberately avoided handshakes with their Pakistani counterparts during tosses and after matches ever since.
The approach was first witnessed when then India men's T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav did not shake hands with his Pakistan counterpart during the Asia Cup in Dubai. Similarly, Harmanpreet and Fatima had also refrained from exchanging handshakes during the Women's ODI World Cup match in Colombo.
Speaking on the eve of the match, Harmanpreet emphasized that cricket remained the sole focus for her team. 'I think we are here for cricket, and we only talk about cricket, except that we don't talk about anything. Cricket has been our dream from day one, and we only discuss cricket and tomorrow's game,' she said when asked by the media.
At the toss on Sunday, Harmanpreet won the toss and chose to bat first. As in recent meetings between the two sides, the captains did not shake hands.
India made one notable selection call, bringing in Bharti Fulmali while leaving out Yastika Bhatia. Harmanpreet stated that the team would enter the match with three spinners and two medium pacers.
India entered the 12-team tournament as the reigning Women's ODI World Cup champions after winning the 2025 title on home soil. However, their recent T20I results have been mixed.
The India-Pakistan clash marked both teams' first Group A match of the 2026 Women's T20 World Cup, with the no-handshake policy once again drawing attention before the game began.
Teams
India: Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur, Bharti Fulmali, Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani, Shreyanka Patil
Pakistan: Gull Feroza, Muneeba Ali (wk), Ayesha Zafar, Saira Jabeen, Aliya Riaz, Natalia Pervaiz, Fatima Sana (c), Rameen Shamim, Nashra Sandhu, Tasmia Rubab, Sadia Iqbal
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