ICC match referee Andy Pycroft says he was given barely any warning before delivering the message that no customary handshake would take place ahead of last Sunday’s India-Pakistan fixture – a decision that has since dominated the Asia Cup narrative.
He was, he insists, merely “the messenger”.
“Four minutes before the toss,” an official close to the discussions said, “the ACC venue manager told him the BCCI, with clearance from the Indian government, did not want the captains to shake hands.”
Faced with the prospect of Suryakumar Yadav extending his hand only for Salman Agha to be left hanging in front of a full house, Pycroft opted to brief the Pakistan skipper there and then. Had there been time, he says he would have escalated the request to Dubai.
The PCB, unconvinced, fired off a complaint to ICC general manager Wasim Khan in the small hours that followed. In the letter the board claimed Pycroft “failed to discharge his responsibility to ensure that respect was extended and maintained amongst the captains as well as between the two competing sides, and to create a positive atmosphere by his conduct and encourage the captains and participating teams to…” – the sentence tails off in the document, but the thrust is clear. The board argues the official “opted to indulge in conduct which clearly violates the spirit of cricket and MCC laws”.
By Tuesday evening the row had escalated. Pakistan hinted they might withdraw from their must-win match against the UAE unless Pycroft was removed from duty. Tournament organisers stuck to the rota. Players warmed up, broadcasters filled, and supporters fidgeted.
An hour behind schedule a hastily arranged meeting took place. According to the PCB release, Pycroft “apologised to the manager and captain of the Pakistan cricket team”. Sources close to the referee insist it was, in fact, an “expression of regret over the misunderstanding and miscommunication”. Either way, the game went ahead and Pakistan’s campaign survived another day.
Inside ICC headquarters there is little appetite for sanctioning the veteran Zimbabwean official. One administrator said the global body sees Pycroft’s actions as “well within the remit of a match referee trying to avoid a public flashpoint”. In other words: no breach, no reprimand.
Former Pakistan batter and coach Bazid Khan believes the episode lays bare deeper governance issues. “This isn’t really about a handshake,” he said on local television. “It’s about process. Who makes decisions, and how quickly the people on the ground are told.”
Indian commentator Harsha Bhogle struck a similar note. “You can sympathise with Pycroft. He’s handed a hot potato seconds before the toss. What’s he meant to do? There has to be a better chain of communication.”
Others were less forgiving. Awais Zia, a former Pakistan Under-19 captain now working in the media, called it “another case of administrative muddle that ends up overshadowing the cricket”.
The controversy does little for relations already strained by travel restrictions and a split-venue tournament. This year’s Asia Cup has India playing exclusively in the UAE, while Pakistan’s matches are staged in Muscat. Logistically workable, politically delicate.
For now Pycroft remains on the appointment sheet. Pakistan, needing two wins from two to make the final, must either accept his presence or risk an even bigger confrontation with the ICC – not to mention broadcasters and sponsors.
Behind the scenes, officials on all sides are privately conceding the affair was avoidable. A senior ACC source put it bluntly: “If someone had picked up the phone on Saturday night, none of this happens.”
Whether that lesson sticks will be tested soon enough. India and Pakistan could still meet again in the final. If they do, the eyes of the cricketing world will linger on the pre-match protocol. Handshakes, fist bumps, nods, or nothing at all – whatever is agreed, the hope is that everyone hears about it more than four minutes before the toss.
