New Delhi : Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has commented on the ongoing debate over the India-Pakistan Asia Cup 2025 match, stating that once India chose to play, the team should have respected the spirit of the game, including performing the customary handshake with the Pakistani side.
“I personally feel that once the decision had been made to play, if we feel so strongly about Pakistan, we should not have played…But if we are going to play them, we should play in the spirit of a game, and we should have shaken their hands,” Tharoor told ANI.
He pointed to the 1999 World Cup clash between India and Pakistan during the Kargil War as an example of sportsmanship. Despite the ongoing conflict, both teams upheld the decorum of the game and exchanged handshakes. “On the very day the soldiers were dying for our country, we were playing the World Cup in England against Pakistan. We were shaking their hands even then because the spirit of the game is a different spirit from what goes on between countries, between Armies and so on,” Tharoor said.
Tharoor also addressed the provocative on-field gestures by Pakistani players in the Super Four match, noting that both teams had failed to maintain proper sportsmanship. The Asia Cup clash came amid calls for boycott following the Pahalgam terror attack. The Indian team, led by captain Suryakumar Yadav, decided against shaking hands with Pakistani skipper Selman Agha, sparking a national debate. India dominated both encounters in the group stage, but the controversy over gestures and missed handshakes has continued to make headlines.