T20 World Cup: India's Harmanpreer Kaur refuses to shake hands with Pakistan captain
indiatoday | June 15, 2026 8:21 AM CST
India captain Harmanpreet Kaur decided to continue the no-handshake policy with her Pakistan counterpart Fatima Sana ahead of the blockbuster clash between both sides at the Women's World Cup 2026. Harmanpreet won the toss, and India opted to bat first in their Women's T20 World Cup 2026 opener. After the coin flip went in her favour, Harmanpreet blanked Sana and went straight to talk to Mel Jones.
Once her interview after the toss was done, the Indian skipper decided to walk away. India's cricketers have continued their policy of avoiding handshakes with Pakistani counterparts, a practice that first came into focus during the men's Asia Cup in 2025. The approach has since been seen across multiple age-group tournaments, including the Rising Stars Asia Cup and the Under-19 Asia Cup. The pattern was evident once again when the two teams met at the Under-19 World Cup.
A similar moment had also occurred at last year's Women's World Cup, where India captain Harmanpreet Kaur did not exchange a handshake with Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana following their encounter. Speaking on the eve of the game, Harmanpreet refused to dwell too much on the no-handshake policy, saying that the team was focused on the game rather than the outside chatter around the game.
India opted to go for a strong side, picking three spinners for the game. After a toss-up between Yastika Bhatia and Bharati Fulmali, it was the latter who was picked for the game. Pakistan handed a World Cup debut to Saira Jabeen. Sana also provided an update on her knee injury, saying she was fine for the game.
Pakistan Women Playing XI: Gull Feroza, Muneeba Ali (wk), Ayesha Zafar, Saira Jabeen, Natalia Pervaiz, Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana (c), Rameen Shamim, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal, Tasmia Rubab
India Women Playing XI: Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Bharti Fulmali, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Shreyanka Patil, Arundhati Reddy
India were able to smash Pakistan by 64 runs to start their campaign on a high and move to second spot in Group A.
Once her interview after the toss was done, the Indian skipper decided to walk away. India's cricketers have continued their policy of avoiding handshakes with Pakistani counterparts, a practice that first came into focus during the men's Asia Cup in 2025. The approach has since been seen across multiple age-group tournaments, including the Rising Stars Asia Cup and the Under-19 Asia Cup. The pattern was evident once again when the two teams met at the Under-19 World Cup.
A similar moment had also occurred at last year's Women's World Cup, where India captain Harmanpreet Kaur did not exchange a handshake with Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana following their encounter. Speaking on the eve of the game, Harmanpreet refused to dwell too much on the no-handshake policy, saying that the team was focused on the game rather than the outside chatter around the game.
India opted to go for a strong side, picking three spinners for the game. After a toss-up between Yastika Bhatia and Bharati Fulmali, it was the latter who was picked for the game. Pakistan handed a World Cup debut to Saira Jabeen. Sana also provided an update on her knee injury, saying she was fine for the game.
Pakistan Women Playing XI: Gull Feroza, Muneeba Ali (wk), Ayesha Zafar, Saira Jabeen, Natalia Pervaiz, Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana (c), Rameen Shamim, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal, Tasmia Rubab
India Women Playing XI: Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Richa Ghosh (wk), Deepti Sharma, Bharti Fulmali, Shree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Shreyanka Patil, Arundhati Reddy
India were able to smash Pakistan by 64 runs to start their campaign on a high and move to second spot in Group A.
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