Why didn't Harmanpreet Kaur & Fatima Sana shake hands during IND-W vs PAK-W Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 match?
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Harmanpreet Kaur & Fatima Sana didn’t shake hands during ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is hosting the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, which kickstarted from June 12. India and Pakistan will one opening their campaign against each other on Sunday, June 14.
The match will be played at the Edgbaston, Birmingham. Harmanpreet Kaur-led Indian side and the Fatima Sana-led Pakistan-side, both will be looking to start their campaigns on a high note.
The two teams have clashed in 16 Women’s T20Is prior to this, and India have been victorious in thirteen of those. Meanwhile, the two have met in the T20 World Cups 8 times, with Indian defeating them six times.
Ahead of their 9th T20 World Cup face-off, both the captains addressed the press conference on the eve of the contest. India and Pakistan games draw a lot of global attention for the history attached to it.
Will Harmanpreet Kaur & Fatima Sana shake hands during IND-W vs PAK-W clash?
As reported by NDTV sources, The India women’s team will not engage in any handshake with Pakistan when the two sides clash at Edgbaston, Birmingham, on Sunday. The sources added that the decision has been taken as there has been “no improvement” in stance regarding infiltration and border tension.
Harmanpreet Kaur and Fatima Sana attended the press conference on the eve of the big match, representing their respective teams. Questions about the relationship between the two nations emerged.
When the Indian skipper was asked about the handshake snub, Harman looked in no mood to give any headlines to the journalists. She gave a blunt reply reminding everyone to ask questions around cricketing affairs not politics.
“Well, I think we are here for cricket, and we only talk about cricket; except for 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 talk about it. For tomorrow’s game, we are thinking of it as just another game we are going to play,” Harmanpreet told reporters.
The handshake snub had started from the men’s T20 Asia Cup last year, and since then there has been no handshake between the two sides.
Furthermore, the reporters highlighted the pressure surrounding an India-Pakistan face-off, Harman initially said that this was “just another game” for them, however, later went on to say:
“Definitely pressure is going to be there, which I earlier agreed to; 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.”
India will look to continue their head-to-head record against their rivals, and start their campaign on a high note as they are still fighting for their first T20 World Cup title.
Where is the IND-W vs PAK-W match scheduled?
IND-W vs PAK-W match is to be played at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
Who is captaining India in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026?
Harmanpreet Kaur is the Indian skipper in the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026.
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Cricket runs in the blood of Indians — and that’s something she truly believes in. A law student with a lifelong connection to the game, she has followed cricket passionately since his school days. Like countless young fans, she first experienced the sport on the field before deepening his understanding through constant watching, reading, and conversations around the game. Writing became a natural extension of that passion, bringing a “Pavilion Perspective” to his work — capturing how fans experience matches through their own lens.