Women’s World Cup 2025: Harmanpreet Kaur, Fatima Sana avoid handshake as India’s ‘no handshake’ stance continues

The ongoing handshake controversy in cricket took another turn as India Women’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Pakistan Women’s skipper Fatima Sana did not shake hands during the toss ahead of Match No. 6 of the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025, held on October 5, 2025, at the R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.

Both captains were present at the toss alongside the match referee and the presenter. After winning the toss, Fatima Sana spoke with the presenter, but before leaving the area, neither captain exchanged a handshake or team sheets, an act that reignited discussions around the continuing tension between the two sides.

The handshake issue has been a recurring headline in recent months, involving the Indian and Pakistani teams. During the Asia Cup 2025, the Indian men’s team refrained from shaking hands with their Pakistan counterparts across all three encounters – in the group stage, Super Four, and the final. On each occasion, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan skipper Salman Ali Agha avoided the customary toss time and post-match handshake, sparking widespread criticism and formal complaints.

Now, the same trend appears to have surfaced in the women’s game, drawing further attention to the growing off-field strain between the two cricketing nations. As for the match itself, Pakistan made one change, bringing Sadaf Shamas into the playing XI, while India replaced Amanjot Kaur with Renuka Singh Thakur. Fatima Sana opted to bowl first, hoping her side could capitalise on the conditions early on and bring two points to their side.

“We’re going to bowl first, looks like there could be some moisture on the wicket. One change for us – Sadaf Shamas replaces Omaima Sohail – our confidence is great, hopefully we’ll play better today. Anything under 250 could be a good chase,” said Sana at the toss.

Kaur said: “We played a good series here before the WC. We’re thinking positively and are looking to do well. One unfortunate change – Amanjot isn’t playing (she’s ill), Renuka Thakur replaces her. We’ve gelled well as a team and looking forward to today’s contest.”

Playing XI:

India Women:

Pratika Rawal, Smriti Mandhana, Harleen Deol, Harmanpreet Kaur(c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh(w), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Renuka Singh Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Shree Charani

Pakistan Women:

Muneeba Ali, Sadaf Shamas, Sidra Amin, Rameen Shamim, Aliya Riaz, Sidra Nawaz(w), Fatima Sana(c), Natalia Pervaiz, Diana Baig, Nashra Sandhu, Sadia Iqbal