T20 World Cup 2026: ‘Wait for 24 hours, I’ll break the suspense’ – Suryakumar Yadav keeps handshake decision under wraps

India captain Suryakumar Yadav, much like his Pakistan counterpart Salman Agha, chose not to reveal whether the two teams would shake hands during their T20 World Cup 2026 clash on Sunday in Colombo. Suryakumar said he preferred to keep the suspense for another 24 hours.

The handshake question was posed twice, and on both occasions, Suryakumar maintained that the focus should remain on the game. Earlier in the day, Agha had expressed similar views, stating that both sides were concentrating on the match, though he added that he expected the teams to uphold the spirit of cricket following the handshake controversy during the 2025 Asia Cup.

“Wait for 24 hours, no. Why are you [speculating] now? We have come here to play cricket, we’ll play good cricket. We will take the call [on handshake] later. Dine well, sleep. I will break the suspense tomorrow. I just said wait for 24 hours, we will play a good game and then after the game… What is important tomorrow? The game is important,” said Suryakumar as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

“When you play an India-Pakistan game, it is more about the occasion. It is a platform. You can say what you want, like it’s just another game. But you know which game you are going to play. And we don’t play them often regularly,” he added.

India have enjoyed a dominant record against Pakistan in World Cups as well as in recent editions of the Asia Cup. In the 2025 Asia Cup, where India defeated Pakistan three times, including in the final, Suryakumar had remarked that he no longer believed there was a rivalry between the two sides. However, on Saturday, when asked whether it was easier or if there was added pressure to maintain that dominance over Pakistan, Suryakumar stressed the importance of starting afresh and not dwelling on past results.

“You have to start from zero. What you did in the past, historically, you can’t carry that to the ground because then sometimes it can lead to complacency. You might go ahead of the game. If you want to be in control and want to keep a relaxed mind, then you have to always have a fresh start. So, personally, I feel that will be a better approach for us tomorrow – to treat it as a fresh game, a normal league game we have come to play in a T20 World Cup because then you stay fresh, take good calls and stay relaxed,” said Suryakumar.

The Indian captain also revealed that he had watched Pakistan’s victories over the Netherlands and the USA, praising Salman Agha’s side for playing quality cricket. He added that while Pakistan might enjoy a slight advantage by playing all their matches in Colombo, it would not be a major factor. Suryakumar pointed out that India are well acquainted with the conditions at the R. Premadasa Stadium, having played there on several previous occasions.