India captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana did not shake hands at the toss in their at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Sunday.
The captains did not shake hands at the toss for the second straight ICC tournament meeting between the arch-rivals, following a similar instance during the 2025 Women’s ODI World Cup match at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo last October. India won the toss and opted to bat first.
“We will bat first. I think it’s a very good pitch to bat on, so we just thought let’s bat and set a decent total on the board. (Does winning a World Cup give them confidence?) Well, I think we all are very excited. The last World Cup definitely has given us a lot of confidence, and we just want to carry that confidence to this World Cup. (Have you been pleased with the build-up?) Yes, definitely. We have plugged a lot of areas and now it’s only about playing good cricket, and we are looking forward to that. Bharti’s playing today. And yeah, Yastika did really well, but today we thought of going with Bharti. We are going with three spinners and two medium pacers,” Harmanpreet said at the toss.
India omitted Yastika Bhatia from the side which played the England T20Is, and Bharti Fulmali was slotted in to bat at number five in the playing XI. Jemimah Rodrigues was slotted to bat at number three.
The toss goes India’s way! 💙 opts to bat first as the Women in Blue gear up for cricket’s greatest rivalry. 🇮🇳🏏
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— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia)
The reigning ODI World Cup champions decided to go in with three spinners – Deepti Sharma, Sree Charani and Shreyanka Patil – and two pacers in Arundhati Reddy and Kranti Gaud.
The absence of a handshake has become the norm in India-Pakistan cricket since the 2025 Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Former India T20I captain and Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha also avoided handshakes in all three meetings at the continental event, as well as during their clash at the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup in Colombo.
Asked before the match whether she expected a handshake with Sana, Harmanpreet chose not to engage with the topic, adding that the game mattered more than the gesture.
“Well, I think we are here for cricket, and we only talk about cricket; except cricket, we don’t talk about anything, and I don’t even think about anything except cricket. Cricket has been our dream from day one, and we only discuss cricket. For tomorrow’s game, we are only thinking that it’s another game that we are going to play.”
“Definitely, pressure is going to be there, which I earlier agree to that – whenever we play against Pakistan pressure will be there – but at the same time, it’s only about how we are going to enjoy that pressure because in any International game, pressure is going to be there; it’s only about giving your 100% in that game and enjoying each and every moment,” she said.
India lead Pakistan 6-2 in Women’s T20 World Cup meetings and have won four of their last five T20Is against their neighbours.
