India skipper Suryakumar Yadav said the team stands in solidarity with the kin of the victims of the terror Pahalgam attack and dedicated the win against Pakistan on Sunday to the armed forces. In the match, India thrashed their neighbours by 7 wickets in a largely one-sided affair in Dubai.
“Perfect occasion, taking the time out, we stand by the victims of the families of Pahalgam terror attack. We express our solidarity. Want to dedicate the win to all our armed forces who showed a lot of bravery. Hope they continue to inspire us all and we give them more reasons on the ground whenever we get an opportunity to put a smile on their face,” he said at the post-match chat.
India coach Gautam Gambhir also echoed his skipper’s words and said the team standss in solidarity with the families of the victims of the terror attack, thanking the Indian armed forces for Operation Sindoor.
“The match was important for us because as a team we wanted to show our solidarity to the families of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack. For everything they have gone through. More importantly, we want to thank our armed forces for their successful Operation Sindoor, and I’m sure we will try and make our country proud and happy,” Gambhir said to the Sony Sports Network.
The India captain had also snubbed a customary handshake against his counterpart Salman Agha during the toss for their Group A contest.
A handshake between captains of both teams during coin toss before matches in international cricket is a convention and not specified as a rule. On this occasion, both the leaders of Indian and Pakistan teams did not engage in one and also refused to make any eye contact.
Both the captains submitted their respective team sheets to the match referee Andy Pycroft from Zimbabwe, spoke with the TV commentator Ravi Shastri, who was conducting the toss, and headed back in their respective directions.
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Sunday was the first time that arch rivals faced off in a cricket match since the Pahalgam terror attacks earlier this year in April, which led to India launching retaliatory military action across the border in early May.
Last month, India announced a new sports policy under which its teams and athletes will not be allowed to engage in bilateral events with Pakistan, but can face them in multilateral international tournaments.
It also prohibited Indian athletes from travelling to Pakistan and refused to host teams and individual players from the neighbouring country.
(With agency inputs)
