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What’s in a handshake? Oh, not a lot really. Only the financial wellbeing of international cricket, and the future of the game as we know it.
The handshake in question was the one not offered (twice) by India captain Suryakumar Yadav to his Pakistan counterpart Salman Agha at the Asia Cup in the UAE, sparking nationalistic chest-beating on both sides and conjuring up a nightmarish vision in which India’s refusal to play their arch rivals in bilateral series is extended to global tournaments.
And how much of a problem would that be? Well, for an India v Pakistan game at a World Cup or Champions Trophy, advertisers are said to pay 10 times the rate they shell out for any other game.
It is why the ICC routinely fix the draw to ensure both teams are in the same group at global events – a piece of administrative subterfuge so ingrained it has stopped raising eyebrows, as it should in any self-respecting sport.
In cricket, though, this manipulation is waved through, since everyone knows that the vast deals with Indian broadcasters that underpin the international game are heavily dependent on a regular diet of India v Pakistan.
In 2022, for instance, the rights to broadcast ICC events for the cycle ending in two years’ time netted $3.1billion in India alone, out of a global figure thought to be around $3.5bn. So, yes, India v Pakistan matters, especially to those nations who are reliant on a share of the broadcast pie to fund the game and keep Test cricket going – also known as everyone outside the so-called Big Three.
India and Pakistan's two meetings at the Asia Cup have been extremely hostile affairs, with the two sides fuelled by anger at the recent military conflict
India captain Suryakumar Yadav and his Pakistan counterpart Salman Agha have both been at fault in this spat - and ICC referee Andy Pycroft (right) appears powerless to enforce the laws
India and Pakistan have always epitomised George Orwell’s contention that sport is war minus the shooting. Yet the lines have become increasingly blurred since the terrorist atrocity in April in Pahalgam, part of the contested Jammu and Kashmir region. India allege that the 26 civilians who died that day did so at the hands of Pakistani militants; Pakistan deny this.
No matter: Indian nationalism (as opposed to its more benign cousin, patriotism) is at an all-time high, fuelled by prime minister Narendra Modi and his ruling BJP, who have long had their hands on the tiller at the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
And the players, it seems, need little encouragement to fan the flames. Having declined to shake hands during the first Asia Cup clash between the sides on September 14, Suryakumar used his post-match press conference to explain why.
'We stand by the families of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack and we express our solidarity,’ he said. ‘And also the most important thing for me, we want to dedicate today’s win to all our armed forces who showed a lot of bravery.
'I hope they continue to inspire us all and we give them more reasons, whenever we get an opportunity, to make them smile.’
The ICC forbid cricketers from sharing political, religious and racial messages, as England’s Moeen Ali (banned from wearing ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘Save Gaza’ wristbands during a Test match in 2014) and Australia’s Usman Khawaja (banned from displaying a dove on his bat at the 2023 Boxing Day Test to raise awareness for the Gaza crisis) have discovered.
Even MS Dhoni, the all-powerful Indian captain, was told during the 2019 World Cup that he couldn’t wear gloves bearing a military insignia.
But times have changed in the six years since, and there has been no indication from the now Indian-run ICC that Suryakumar overstepped the mark. Instead, sections of the Indian media have focused on the fact that the laws of cricket do not demand hands to be shaken – a bad-faith emphasis typical of our times.
India captain MS Dhoni sported a military insignia on his wicket-keeping gloves at the 2019 World Cup in England - and was told to stop wearing them
India and Pakistan have always epitomised George Orwell’s contention that sport is war minus the shooting. Yet the lines have become increasingly blurred
Neither has it helped that Pakistan responded so thoughtlessly to the provocation, with Agha declining to turn up to the press conference and an unseemly spat ensuing with Andy Pycroft, the ICC match referee who – despite his title – is no more than a pawn.
India had giftwrapped them a chance to claim the moral high ground: Agha could have spoken to the media, expressed his disappointment at Suryakumar’s snub, and pointed out in dignified fashion that his team would continue to be available for the usual handshakes, whether or not they are in the rulebook.
Instead, Pakistan sulked – and worse, with fast bowler Haris Rauf, fielding on the boundary during Sunday’s second game between the sides, making a ‘6–0’ gesture, supposedly reflecting the number of Indian and Pakistani jets shot down during the recent skirmish.
Overall, their response exposed the chaotic nature of the way cricket is run in Pakistan, and allowed further Indian mockery of their neighbours.
Suryakumar, certainly, wasn’t going to miss the opportunity after his side’s second win, an ill-tempered affair in which Abhishek Sharma’s 39-ball 74 made the result a formality.
Asked about the ‘rivalry’ between the teams, India’s captain seized his chance: ‘I would like to say one thing on this question: I feel that you should stop asking this question on the rivalry.’
He went on: ‘According to me, if two teams play 15–20 matches and if it is 7–7 or 8–7, then that is called a rivalry. But 13–0, 10–1… I don’t know what the stats are. But this is not a rivalry any more.’
In one sense, he’s right: India v Pakistan is no longer a contest of equals, either on or off the pitch. But his perspective is recency bias gone mad: even accounting for India’s latter-day dominance, Pakistan have won more games against India across all formats than they have lost: 88–78.
Haris Rauf provokes the crowd by holding up six fingers before adding a '0' - thought to indicate how many jets each side lost during their recent skirmish
India have dominated the rivalry in recent years, though Pakistan still have a better head-to-head record overall
And if Suryakumar had been speaking in, say, early 2006, when the tally was 73–43 in Pakistan’s favour, he might have had to concede precisely the opposite view. No Pakistani was saying 'the rivalry' was over back then, and it’s little more than gloating for an Indian to suggest it now.
But that is how cricket works in these troubled times: the powerful first provoke, then mock. And if India take their posturing to its logical extreme, and decide not to play their bitter rivals (sorry, Suryakumar) altogether, the financial tsunami will be felt by the rest of the world.
Championship title race tied up in Notts
If Nottinghamshire clinch their first championship title since 2010, no one can say they haven’t deserved it: they have won six matches with a round to go, two more than the only team that can catch them, Surrey.
And their win last week at the Oval was one of the games of the season: a 20-run thriller that had the good fortune to be broadcast on Sky.
But the closeness of that match only added to the perennial frustration at the fixture list’s lack of balance: Nottinghamshire and Surrey, the two best teams in the land, have played each other only once this season, an echo of 2024, when second-placed Essex had only one crack at eventual champions Surrey.
While each of the 10 Division One teams play only five of the other nine twice, our game’s blue-riband event will remain lopsided.
An eight-team top flight, with home-and-away fixtures against all seven opponents, would push the problem into division two. But wouldn’t that be the lesser of two evils?
Nottinghamshire celebrate their pivotal victory at the Oval last week - putting them in pole position to end Surrey's run of dominance in the County Championship
Don't rush the fabulous Baker boy
What’s the rush with Sonny Baker? He clearly has promise, as anyone who watched the Hundred could see.
But in both his England appearances, the captain – first Harry Brook, then Jacob Bethell – has overbowled him in a well-meaning attempt to give him a maiden international wicket.
In the first ODI against South Africa at Headingley, Baker was marmalised by Aiden Markram in his first spell, yet was brought back for a second, and finished with 7–0–76–0.
Sonny Baker has huge promise - so let's let him develop at a healthier pace
And in the third T20 in Dublin on Sunday, he inexplicably bowled the final over as Ireland batted first, even though the less expensive Luke Wood also had an over to go. Baker’s analysis there was 4–0–52–0.
He’s only 22. Let’s not drain him of confidence before his career has even begun.
A wonderful Worcestershire tribute
There cannot have been a dry eye in the house at Trent Bridge on Saturday after Worcestershire beat Hampshire in the final of the Metro Bank One-Day Cup – then took the trophy over to Paul and Lisa Baker, parents of Josh, their team-mate who died last year at the age of 20.
On occasions like this, county cricket does it better than anyone.
