5 min readNov 15, 2026 04:02 PM IST First published on: Nov 15, 2026 at 04:00 PM ISTAn Indian captain walks up to the Pakistani counterpart and his opening partner to congratulate them on a one-sided win in a group game on the cricket field. Handshakes are exchanged, so are smiles, after which two of them hug. Pakistan had beaten India by 10 wickets with Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam scoring unbeaten fifties.Five Octobers ago in Dubai, after a Group game of the men’s T20 World Cup, India captain Virat Kohli showed the world what it meant to be gracious in defeat. A couple of years later, in another touching moment, Pakistan fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi presented a gift for new dad Jasprit Bumrah.AdvertisementThe teams had played cricket with a take-no-prisoners philosophy, but their finest batsmen and fast bowlers showed cricket and friendship can be mixed, even between fiercest rivals.One can argue that this camaraderie existed before the Pahalgam terrorist attack of 2025 and Operation Sindoor, after which players from both cricket teams don’t even shake hands any more. Instances of senior Pakistan players mimicking fighter jets and machine guns during a match were witnessed. In a tit-for-tat, an Indian fast bowler did a jet-downing celebration after dismissing a Pakistan batsman.But the way the India Under-19 team celebrated after a thrilling last-ball Asia Cup final win against Pakistan on Saturday would have shocked those who believe cricket remains a gentleman’s game. Whatever the provocation from the opposition, these young cricketers would do well to remember that a hard-fought, backs-against-the-wall victory need not be accompanied by aggressive gestures or excessive celebrations. Such conduct only detracts from the achievement and has little place in the spirit of the game.AdvertisementIndia versus Pakistan matches have often been described as war minus the shooting. In the heat of the moment, things are said on the cricket field, but at the end of the last ball it’s the sporting spirit that must come to the fore. Members of the Indian support staff had to step in and rein in their players as the wonderful win ended on a sour note.The Under-19 cricketers, some of whom could go on to represent the senior Indian team, need to be mindful of the example they set. Thousands of aspiring young cricketers, many of them impressionable, will inevitably watch the viral clips of the team’s celebrations. Their conduct, therefore, carries a responsibility that goes beyond the result on the field. Young players can sometimes get carried away in the heat of the moment, which is why the coaching staff, with their experience, should have been alert to the possibility of emotions spilling over. If the team had been reminded of the expectations under the ICC Code of Conduct, the message clearly did not register. A last-ball victory had made its own statement; the gestures and taunts that followed were hardly necessary.Unfortunately, this is not the first instance in recent times that a teenage India cricketer has been in the news for not maintaining decorum on the playing field. In a tri-series match involving Sri Lanka earlier this year, 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Vishen Halambage were seen shoving each other. India’s potential GenNext star being involved in a physical altercation is not something for the BCCI to be proud of.Over the past two years, encounters between India and Pakistan in multi-nation tournaments have increasingly been marked by an atmosphere of tension, even as the two countries do not play bilateral cricket. The example set by senior players has not helped matters. The practice of captains — beginning with India’s Suryakumar Yadav — avoiding the customary handshake at the toss appears to have filtered down to the younger players as well.you may likeThis perhaps reflects an unfortunate tendency among cricketers to feel the need to demonstrate their patriotism more visibly than sportspersons in other disciplines. After all, Indian and Pakistani athletes competing in non-cricket events at the Asian Games have been seen exchanging handshakes and high-fives.One can only hope that India’s junior cricketers reflect on the manner of their celebrations. These are sensitive times, and while hugs and handshakes may have become less common, showing restraint and respect at the end of a hard-fought contest, whether in victory or defeat, remains a basic expectation of sporting conduct. Players representing India should be conscious of the responsibility that comes with wearing the national colours.The writer is senior associate editor, The Indian Expressnihal.koshie@expressindia.com