Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana has shown no interest in bowing to India’s Harmanpreet Kaur following the toss of the semi final in Dubai at the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has taken its distance from the controversial call.
The reason behind Nigar Sultana decision remains unclear. It is a personal decision and the board considers cricket and sport to foster friendly relations between nations, said Rafiqul Islam Babu, chairman of the women’s committee at the BCB.
“Of course, it was her own choice,” Babu said, also emphasizing that Bangladesh wishes to have friendly relationship with all countries including India.
The clash occurred, while there was an on-going handshake row between India and Pakistan. The two sides have not been shaking hands since the tension between the two neighbours because of the terror attack in the town of Pahalgam in September last year. So, the ruling off against India by Sultana became a lot of interest.
That was a losing cause as Bangladesh couldn’t close the gap with India to secure a semi-final victory, bowing down 40 runs. It was the second time in a row they lost the semi-final of the continental tournament following a Bangladesh Asia Cup victory in 2018.
Not yet had an official word to say about the handshake incident, however, Sultana made the comment on private Twitter account. At the same time, questions have also been raised on her future as the Bangladesh captain over her behavior.
The situation would be taken into account after Bangladesh’s presence in Asian Games, Babu said. He also admitted that the team has their own negative side, as they are unable to beat the tough side teams when they perform well.
The BCB now has plans in place to enhance the team and improve its competitiveness prior to the Asian Games decision-making process on the captaincy and other matters.