Colombo: As anticipated, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur did not shake hands with her Pakistan counterpart Fatima Sana during the toss for the Women’s World Cup clash, following the precedent set by the men’s team during the Asia Cup.
The BCCI had instructed Indian players to skip the customary handshake with their Pakistani counterparts. During the toss, conducted by Mel Jones, both captains maintained their distance throughout the ceremony. Pakistan won the toss and opted to field.
India, who boast an 11-0 record over Pakistan in ODIs, made a forced change to their playing XI, with Renuka Singh replacing the injured Amanjot Kaur. Pakistan brought in Sadaf Shamas in place of Omaima Sohail.
The men’s Asia Cup earlier this year had seen all three India-Pakistan matches played in a tense atmosphere, with Indian players refraining from handshakes before and after the games. India had also declined to accept the Asia Cup trophy from ACC president Mohsin Naqvi, who is both the Pakistan Cricket Board chief and an interior minister with a strong anti-India political stance.
Bilateral tensions have escalated in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 Indian tourists were killed by Pakistan-backed terrorists. India subsequently launched a military operation, codenamed ‘Operation Sindoor,’ targeting terror infrastructure across the border.
Teams:
Pakistan Women: Muneeba Ali, Sadaf Shamas, Sidra Amin, Rameen Shamim, Aliya Riaz, Sidra Nawaz (wk), Fatima Sana (c), Natalia Pervaiz, Diana Baig, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal.
India Women: Pratika Rawal, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Sneh Rana, Renuka Singh Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani.
