India captain Suryakumar Yadav dedicated his team’s victory over Pakistan in the Asia Cup to the Indian Armed Forces.
Suryakumar Yadav Dedicates Victory Over Pakistan to Armed Forces
India captain Suryakumar Yadav dedicated his team’s win over Pakistan in the Group A clash of the Men’s Asia Cup to the Indian Armed Forces. Celebrating his 35th birthday, the right-handed batter played an unbeaten 47 off 37 balls as India chased down 128 with seven wickets in hand and 25 balls to spare. Following the win, there were no handshakes between the teams as Suryakumar and Shivam Dube headed straight to the dressing room.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Suryakumar expressed solidarity with the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed 26 innocent lives earlier this year in Kashmir. India subsequently launched Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
“I think it’s a perfect occasion. Taking the time out, we stand by the families of the Pahalgam terror attack victims and express our solidarity. Most importantly, we want to dedicate today’s win to all our armed forces who showed immense bravery,” said Suryakumar.
We stand by the victims of the families of Pahalgam terror attack. We express our solidarity. We want to dedicate today's win to all our Armed Forces who showed a lot of bravery. Hope they continue to inspire us all and we give them more reasons on the ground whenever we get an… pic.twitter.com/stkrqIEBuE
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 14, 2025
Ahead of Sunday’s Group A match against Pakistan, social media was abuzz with Indian fans expressing displeasure at the BCCI for going ahead with the fixture despite the nation’s mood. A day prior, India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate acknowledged the situation, saying the players were aware of the public sentiment and understood the emotions back home.
The match itself began amid tension, with no handshakes between India captain Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha. The two also avoided eye contact at the toss, setting a subdued tone for the contest.
‘Return gift to India’
At the post-match presentation, India captain Suryakumar Yadav was greeted with a “happy birthday” chant from former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar. He described the win against Pakistan as a “return gift” for fans back home.
India’s comprehensive victory was built on a stellar bowling performance. Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Varun Chakravarthy combined to take six wickets, restricting Pakistan to 127/9 in 20 overs. In reply, Abhishek Sharma provided a flying start, scoring 31 runs off 13 balls, while Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube saw India home with unbeaten scores of 47 and 10, respectively.
