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Former Indian cricketer Murali Karthik bursted out on the Pakistan Cricket Board for the boycott drama over the handshake controversy after the match against India during the ongoing Asia Cup 2025. Notably, the Indian players prevented a handshake with the Pakistani players after a seven-wicket win over arch-rivals. Before the match, Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav also avoided a hand shake with Pakistani captain Salman Ali Agha at the toss.
The entire hand shake controversy didn’t suit well for the Pakistan Cricket Board as they demanded suspension of match referee Andy Pycroft who allegedly told captain of both India and Pakistan to not shake hands. Apart from that, Pakistan Cricket team also tried to boycott the game against UAE and also came to the ground late as the match got delayed by one hour.
If you want to take a stand, plz go ahead: Murali Karthik
Sharing his thoughts on the overall drama started with just a handshake, Murali Karhik came heavily on the Pakistan Cricket Board for their childish behaviour. Speaking further, Karthik also alleged that Pakistan took a U-turn after they imposed a fine of $16 million. Despite all the drama, Pakistan have qualified for the super fours after 41-run win over UAE on September 17.
"If you want to take a stand, please go ahead. I think for everybody in life, you take a stand, but stick to it. Have the conviction to stick to it. Just because you see that there could be a financial implication, which is 16 million USD over a handshake saga or for something like this, I can't think of anything. Even kids in kindergarten nowadays don't behave like this, so it's a bit funny and again you're holding so many people to ransom for no rhyme or reason, absolutely no rhyme or reason," Murali Kartik said on Cricbuzz.
