Amid PCB’s demand to remove match referee Andy Pycroft, a report has claimed that he was following instructions from a member at the Asian Cricket Council, whose chief is Mohsin Naqvi, the Pakistan board chairman.
The India vs Pakistan ‘no handshake’ row has snowballed into a big controversy, with the Pakistan Cricket Board demanding the removal of the match referee Andy Pycroft, over what transpired in the Asia Cup 2025 match on Sunday. Team India’s decision to not shake hands with the members of the Pakistan team remained intact from the toss to the end of the contest. At the start of the match, Pycroft informed the Pakistan skipper, Salman Ali Agha, that he should avoid approaching Suryakumar for a handshake. However, such an ‘unsportsmanlike’ request from the match referee infuriated the Pakistan Cricket Board.
PCB even threatened to boycott its upcoming match against the UAE, informing the International Cricket Council (ICC) that it wants Pycroft removed immediately. However, a report in the Times of India has claimed that the match referee was following instructions from the Asian Cricket Council, whose chief is Mohsin Naqvi (also the PCB chairman), before the match.
“What has ICC got to do with it? Their role ends when the officials are appointed. Someone from the ACC had a chat with Pycroft before the game, and what happened at the toss was a result of that chat. It’s about time the PCB chief finds out what that chat was, who did it, and why-instead of pointing fingers at the ICC to further fuel the fire,” a source tracking developments told the news outlet.
In its official protest on the matter, Pakistan also labelled India’s decision not to shake hands with Pakistan players as ‘non-sporting’. However, no rule in the book of MCC’s laws states that shaking hands with the opponent team is mandatory for players. It isn’t considered anything more than a goodwill gesture.
