Hesson breaks silence on India’s handshake snub, explains Salman’s absence from presentation

DUBAI: Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Mike Hesson has voiced his disappointment after the Indian team avoided handshakes with the green shirts following their seven-wicket win in the high-voltage Asia Cup 2025 clash at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.

Speaking during the post-match media conference, Hesson stated that while Pakistan’s players were prepared to uphold the spirit of the game through the customary handshake, their opponents chose to walk straight off the field instead

“Obviously, we were ready to shake hands at the end of the game. We were disappointed that our opposition didn’t do that. We went over there to shake hands but they were already heading to the dressing room,” Hesson said.

“It was a disappointing way for the game to end. We were not satisfied with how we played, but we were certainly willing to go and shake hands,” he added.

The coach also shed light on Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha’s absence from the customary post-match presentation, linking it to the incident.

“I think it was just a flow-on effect. We were keen to engage and shake hands at the end of the match, that didn’t happen, and that was pretty much the end of it,” he explained.

Earlier, Pakistan’s decision to bat first backfired as they managed only 127/9 in 20 overs, despite a fighting knock from Sahibzada Farhan. 

The Green Shirts endured a disastrous start, losing Saim Ayub (0) and Mohammad Haris (3) inside the first two overs to Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, slipping to 6/2.

Fakhar Zaman (17) and Farhan steadied the innings with a 39-run stand before Axar Patel dismissed Zaman in the eighth over. A middle-order collapse followed, leaving Pakistan reeling at 64/6 by the 13th over. 

Farhan, who top-scored with 40 off 44 balls (three sixes, one four), was eventually removed in the 17th over.

The lower order offered resistance, with Shaheen Shah Afridi blasting a quickfire 33 off 16 deliveries, including four towering sixes. Faheem Ashraf (11) and Sufiyan Muqeem (10) also chipped in with useful runs late in the innings.

Chasing 128, India sealed victory with 25 balls to spare. Shubman Gill fell early, but Abhishek Sharma’s explosive 31 off 13 balls (two sixes, four fours) put India in control before Saim Ayub dismissed him in the fourth over.

At 41/2, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav consolidated with a 56-run stand. Varma departed for 31 in the 13th over, but Suryakumar remained unbeaten on 47 off 37 balls, including five fours and a six—his highest T20I score against Pakistan.

Saim Ayub was the only successful bowler for Pakistan, taking all three Indian wickets for 35 runs in his four-over spell.

After hitting the winning runs, Suryakumar and teammate Shivam Dube exchanged fist bumps and congratulated each other, before heading straight to the dressing room. 

This incident mirrored a similar moment at the start of the game, when both Pakistan and Indian skipper avoided shaking hands during the toss.