Former Pakistan cricket captain Rashid Latif has claimed that the recent incident, where Indian players avoided shaking hands with Pakistani players, was actually planned under the instructions of Indian coach Gautam Gambhir.
According to Latif, this was not just about cricket — politics was involved. He explained that Gambhir had asked for a ticket from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the previous elections, but he did not get it. Now, with elections coming up again, Gambhir is trying hard to please the BJP leadership so he can secure a ticket next time. As part of this plan, he put pressure on the young Indian players not to shake hands with Pakistan’s team, in order to show loyalty to the party’s hardline stance.
Latif added that if senior stars like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were still part of the team, Gambhir would never have dared to take such a step. Both Kohli and Rohit, he said, have great sportsmanship and high character, and they would never accept such behavior. These players believe in keeping politics away from sports and always promote respect through cricket.
He further said that since the current Indian team is mostly made up of junior players, Gambhir saw an opportunity to use them for his political goals. The young players could not resist the coach’s pressure, and the unfortunate incident took place, which damaged the spirit of the game.
Latif concluded by saying that politics should never enter sports. Cricket is meant to bring people closer, not to divide them. If the game is used for personal or political interests, it will lose its real purpose and beauty.