PCB clears Pakistan to play UAE as Andy Pycroft apologises over handshake row
Honestly, you can’t make this stuff up. So, after a whirlwind of rumors and all sorts of panic about Pakistan maybe pulling out of the Asia Cup 2025, the PCB finally gave the green light—yeah, they’re playing on. The big twist? ICC’s Andy Pycroft came out and basically said, “My bad,” after that awkward-as-hell handshake screw-up during the India-Pakistan game on the 14th. Apparently, everybody was losing their minds over what turned out to be a straight-up communication fail. Pakistan’s clash with UAE in Dubai on Wednesday was a must-win, and let’s just say it kicked off with a heap of drama. There was this whole hour’s delay, people whispering left and right, meetings behind closed doors—felt more like a soap opera than a cricket match for a bit. But hey, the game eventually started, so crisis averted… for now.
So, yeah, the PCB completely lost it over this whole mess. First off, they just straight-up pulled the plug on their pre-match press conference. No warning, just—poof—gone. Then, late at night (like, classic “bad news o’clock” timing, right before midnight), they dropped a statement saying they were basically huddling up, trying to figure out whether Pakistan would even bother showing up for the Asia Cup.
Next day? Utter chaos. The players weren’t allowed to leave their hotel. I mean, imagine being told, “Nah, just sit tight, don’t even think about heading to the stadium for that 4:30 slot.” Meanwhile, PCB boss Mohsin Naqvi was busy back in Lahore, calling a press conference—and, get this, he even brought in old chairmen Ramiz Raja and Najam Sethi, who, if you know, don’t exactly agree on anything except maybe chai.
And then, obviously, the rumor mill just went off. Everyone started whispering that Pakistan might just bail from the Asia Cup altogether. What a circus.
Right before the toss? Boom,
PCB chucks out this statement: “Andy Pycroft told the captains of India and Pakistan they couldn’t even shake hands before their match. PCB were having absolutely none of that. Pycroft now says the whole thing from September 14 was a misunderstanding and, yeah, he’s sorry. Now the ICC’s saying they’ll look into any code of conduct stuff.” They even tossed out a video—Pycroft hashing things out face-to-face with Naveed Akram Cheema, skipper Agha, coach Hesson, and Wasim Khan from the ICC. So yeah, proper soap opera stuff.
Yeah, so right after the UAE game kicked off, PCB big boss and ACC chief Mohsin Naqvi rolled up for a press chat. Dude basically said, “Hey, we asked the ICC to actually look into those code of conduct mess-ups from September 14. Cricket’s supposed to be cricket—leave the politics at the door, please.” Naqvi didn’t sugarcoat it, either. He straight-up admitted this whole thing’s been a headache for Pakistan cricket. Still, he reckons that apology smoothed things over, so we can all chill out now.
So, here’s what’s up for Pakistan
— Honestly, this whole handshake mess? Looks petty at first, but man, it just blasted open the back-and-forth drama between the PCB and ICC. A stupid gesture turning into a whole saga about who’s got respect and who’s just being a pain. Classic cricket politics, right? PCB sticking around for the Asia Cup? That’s a power move, honestly. No more whispers about them bailing, which is a relief—no one wants days of clickbait about withdrawals. Besides, now the ball’s in ICC’s court; they gotta actually address this nonsense, or at least look like they’re doing something so it doesn’t happen again. But let’s get real: Pakistan showing up means the tournament isn’t dead on arrival. Everyone’s hyped for that India vs Pakistan game on September 21 (argue with your uncle, you know he’s gonna watch it). It’s all about the on-field action now, less about boardroom shade-throwing. That’s exactly where fans want it.
