‘Last match no handshake, today they may not eat biryani’: Prakash Raj on India-Pakistan Asia Cup clash

Dubai: Actor Prakash Raj has expressed strong disapproval of India facing Pakistan in the ongoing Asia Cup, questioning the decision to play cricket against the neighbour amid heightened tensions.

Taking to X, the Tamil actor wrote, “Last match.. They did not Shake Hands .. Today they may not eat Biriyani.. playing Sports with them and playing Games with us ???.”

The fixture was consumed by off-field drama after India refused to shake hands with their counterparts. In return, Pakistan opted out of the post-match presentation. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) held match referee Andy Pycroft accountable for the entire fiasco and asked for his immediate removal.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) threatened to boycott their must-win fixture against the UAE and cancelled the pre-match press conference for the contest as well. Pakistan players arrived late at the Dubai International Stadium, forcing the game to be delayed by one hour. Pakistan management met Pycroft before the toss and then shared a muted video of the meeting, which led to heavy backlash.

Pakistan continued with its pattern of cancelling the pre-match presser by calling off the one on Saturday before taking on India. Pycroft will stand in as the match referee after all the off-field drama. Amid the handshake row and ongoing friction with Pycroft, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi dropped in at Pakistan's training session, met with players and conferred at length with coach Hesson.

Naqvi, who is also the chair of the Asian Cricket Council, dropped in at the training session on Saturday evening and had a brief chat with the players at the ICC Academy. He then went on to meet Hesson and had an intense conversation with the former New Zealand cricketer. Naqvi was animated throughout their conversation and even appeared to be emphasising specific points with his gestures.