On September 9, the ceremony of the ceremonial unveiling of the Asia Cup 2025 and the Captains Day ceremony in Dubai united all eight captains in a single roof. But the Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav received the greatest attention after he shook hands with Pakistani captain Salman Agha and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President and PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi.
As tensions have escalated, calls for India to boycott Pakistan have drawn a lot of attention in recent months. Their first time playing together before the match in Dubai on September 13 was on Captains’ Day. All of the captains posed with the Asia Cup trophy to start the ceremony, and then ACC chief Mohsin Naqvi gave a formal introduction. Notably, Naqvi received a handshake from each skipper. However, cameras caught Suryakumar Yadav shaking hands with Naqvi when it was his turn.
— Out Of Context Cricket (@GemsOfCricket) September 9, 2025 Suryakumar Yadav’s Handshake with Salman Agha Sparks Diplomatic Debate
Naqvi’s recent remarks, in which he charged India with staging political theatrics around cross-border tensions, caused the gesture to go viral. Back home, SKY’s handshake was seen by many supporters as a diplomatic requirement.
As all of the captains were leaving the room following the media appearance, the Indian captain shook hands with Salman Agha, the captain of Pakistan. Nonetheless, throughout the media engagement, the two captains kept a noticeable gap. Following the press conference, Suryakumar Yadav met with the other six captains and engaged in a cordial exchange.
Suryakumar Yadav handshake with terrorist Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha.
In India, patriotism is only on 15th August, on other days patriotism goes on leave.😭#AsiaCup2025 #AsiaCup #INDvPAK pic.twitter.com/PKyuK0LJzD
— kuldeep singh (@kuldeep0745) September 9, 2025
The campaign of India begins on September 10 when they will play against United Arab Emirates, and the tournament begins on September 9 with Afghanistan playing Hong Kong. More so, the first game in the tournament will be a match between Pakistan and Oman. The key spectacle that the spectators are waiting to watch is the much-anticipated India-Pakistan game which will be played in Dubai on Sunday, September 14.
India schedule for Asia Cup 2025:
September 10, Wednesday: Group A – India vs UAE
September 14, Sunday: Group A – India vs Pakistan
September 19, Friday: Group A – India vs Oman
