Under-19 World Cup: India, Bangladesh captains skip handshake at toss

During an ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup match, the captains of India and Bangladesh did not shake hands at the toss. This marks the first time such an incident has been recorded in an ICC event.

The incident comes amid ongoing tensions in cricket-related matters between the two countries. Earlier, Indian IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders released Bangladeshi fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman following calls in India to exclude him from the team.

In response to these developments, the Bangladesh Cricket Board initially refused to send its team to India and requested a neutral venue from the ICC. The ICC later prepared to send a two-member delegation to Bangladesh to discuss the matter. Initially, Bangladesh refused to issue a visa for one Indian member of the delegation but later agreed.

This is not the first instance of captains avoiding handshakes. During the Asia Cup T20 last year, the Indian captain did not shake hands with the Pakistani captain at the toss or after the match. In that tournament, Pakistan and India faced each other three times, and handshakes were avoided in all matches.

Similarly, in the Rising Stars event and the Under-19 Asia Cup, handshakes were not observed between Pakistan and Indian players.