Mohammad Azharuddin takes anti-India stance on no-handshake controversy
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Former Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin is not on the same page as the other players and the ICT fans, since he disagreed with the idea and stated that there is nothing wrong with handshakes; if they intend to protest, then they need to boycott the game as a whole.
India defeated Pakistan in the first match with ease, as Suryakumar Yadav, the skipper, led from the front with a dictating innings of 47*. However, after finishing the game in style, the Indian captain walked out of the park alongside Shivam Dube without going for the customary handshake with the Pakistani players.
Salman Agha protested by not attending the post-match interview in the game, while the PCB also sent repeated emails and urged the ICC to intervene, asking for the replacement of Andy Pycroft as the match referee.
Indian legend Mohammad Azharuddin disagrees with the India vs Pakistan handshake controversy
Though the Indian fans and several former cricketers seemed delighted with India's decision to snub a handshake with the Pakistani cricketers, former captain Mohammad Azharuddin has opposed the idea and claimed that if India wants to protest, then the match should be boycotted as a whole.
Speaking to NDTV, he said, “I feel that there was nothing wrong with shaking hands. When you are playing the match, you might as well play with everything, like shake hands or whatever. I don't know what the problem was. I really cannot understand. But I don't feel there was anything wrong to shake hands.”
"When you're playing in protest, you might as well not play. There's no point playing under protest. Once you've agreed to play when you said you won't play Pakistan in bilateral, be it ICC events or the Asia Cup, then you must play with full intensity. Otherwise, there's no need to play at all," Azharuddin added.
Pakistan are planning a silent revolt against India in the second Asia Cup encounter
As per the latest reports from the Indian reporters in Dubai, the Pakistan team, led by Salman Agha, has planned a new strategy going into the Super-4 stage, as they start the next stage against India on Sunday.
Specifically, Rohit Juglan has been heard saying that the rivals had plans like donning a white T-shirt with something written on it, which they could use to mock India every time they dismissed an Indian batter.
Also, Pakistan had planned some moves if they could pull off a win in the game against the Men in Blue. The PCB has anyway cancelled all press conferences and has avoided making any statements on these matters, which has further flared up the speculations.
India topped Group A in the Asia Cup contest
The Indian team is being led for the first time in a multi-nation tournament by skipper Suryakumar Yadav. Yadav has won all bilaterals for India as a skipper and is now eyeing a major title. India topped Group A with three wins in their three matches.
Pakistan, on the other hand, finished in the second position and has also made it to the Super-4 stage. Group B teams Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have also made it through to the next stage in the Asia Cup.
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