'Suryakumar Yadav shook hands with me in private': Salman Agha claims India skipper is under political pressure

Pakistan National Cricket Team captain Salman Agha has claimed that the India National Cricket Team skipper Suryakumar Yadav greeted him and shook hands with him in private.

This revelation from Salman Agha comes after India adopted the no-handshake policy in the matches against the Pakistan National Cricket Team in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2025.

They're not disrespecting us by not shaking hands, they're disrespecting cricket - Salman Agha

India National Cricket Team players refused to engage in customary post-match handshakes with the Pakistan National Cricket Team players in three Asia Cup 2025 matches between the two sides.

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The two captains didn't greet each other during the toss in all the matches, and things took a controversial turn in the final when Suryakumar Yadav and Salman Agha were interviewed by different presenters - Ravi Shastri and Waqar Younis.

While talking about India's no-handshake stance in the post-match press conference, the Pakistan skipper, Salman Agha, slammed the Suryakumar Yadav & Co. for disrespecting the game with their disappointing behaviour. He said:

"What India have done this tournament is very disappointing. They're not disrespecting us by not shaking hands, they're disrespecting cricket. Good teams don't do what they did today. We went to pose with the trophy on our own because we wanted to fulfill our obligations. We stood there and took our medals. I don't want to use harsh words but they've been very disrespectful."

Suryakumar Yadav shook hands with me in private at the start of the tournament - Salman Agha

Salman Agha further made a shocking revelation, saying that Suryakumar Yadav shook hands with him in private, but snubbed the handshake in front of the world because of the pressure from the Indian officials. He said:

"He shook hands with me in private at the start of the tournament. Both at the pre-tournament press conference, and when we met in the referee's meeting.

"But when they're out in the world in front of the cameras, they don't shake our hands. I'm sure he's following the instructions he's been given, but if it was up to him, he'd shake hands with me."

This is the first time I've ever seen this happen - Salman Agha

India refused to take the Asia Cup 2025 trophy from the ACC President and PCB Chairman, Mohsin Naqvi, and they celebrated with an invisible trophy after defeating Pakistan in the summit clash.

Talking about this, Salman Agha said that the ACC head was bound to present the trophy to the champion team and was hopeful of all the India-Pakistan controversies ending soon. He said:

"This is the first time I've ever seen this happen. Whatever happened in this tournament was very bad, and I hope it stops at some stage because it's bad for cricket. Everything that happened today was a consequence of all that happened [before]. Of course the ACC president will give the trophy to the winners. If you won't take the trophy from him, how will you get it?"

"I'm not just a Pakistan captain, I'm a cricket fan. If a kid's watching in India or Pakistan, we're not sending them a good message. People think of us as role models, but if we're behaving like this, we're not inspiring them. What happened shouldn't have happened, but you should ask the people [India] responsible for this rather than me."

Also Read: Watch: Virat Kohli makes his presence felt in Asia Cup final to humiliate Haris Rauf after India's triumph