T20 World Cup: India's Harmanpreet Kaur refuses to shake hands with Pakistan captain

India captain Harmanpreet Kaur decided to continue the no handshake policy with her Pakistan counterpart Fatima Sana ahead of the blockbuster clash between both sides at the Women's World Cup 2026 on Sunday, June 14. Harmanpreet won the toss and India opted to bat first in their Women's T20 World Cup 2026 opener. After the coin flip went in her favour, Harmanpreet blanked Sana and went straight to talk to Mel Jones.

Once her interview after the toss was done, the Indian skipper decided to walk away. India's cricketers have continued their policy of avoiding handshakes with Pakistani counterparts, a practice that first came into focus during the



men's Asia Cup in 2025.

The approach has since been seen across multiple age-group tournaments, including the Rising Stars Asia Cup and the Under-19 Asia Cup. The pattern was evident once again when the two teams met at the Under-19 World Cup.

A similar moment had also occurred at last year's Women's World Cup, where India captain Harmanpreet Kaur did not exchange a handshake with Pakistan skipper Fatima Sana following their encounter. Speaking on the eve of the game, Harmanpreet refused to dwell too much on the no handshake policy, saying that the team was focused on the game rather than the outside chatter around the game.