Pakistan U19 mentor Sarfaraz Ahmed lashed out at India U19 boys after the and accused them of unethical behaviour, saying their conduct reflected a lack of sportsmanship.
Sarfaraz might be upset because of India’s refusal to do a customary handshake with the Pakistan cricketers. The trend began during the Asia Cup 2025 when the Suryakumar Yadav-led side refused handshakes with Pakistan counterparts as a protest against the Pahalgam game, and it was followed by the women’s team and the .
“We have played against Indian teams that respected cricket. The way the young boys behaved was disrespectful towards the sport,” Sarfaraz said.
“I clearly told my players that celebrations should be respectful. I wanted the boys to show their ability in this format. I told my boys: back yourself, let them do what they are doing.”
Sarfaraz added that he told his team to celebrate the win without compromising sportsmanship, calling India’s conduct unethical. “India’s behaviour regarding the game was not good, and the Indian team’s conduct in cricket was unethical,” he added.
“But we celebrated the victory with sportsmanship, because there should always be sportsmanship in cricket; what India did is their own action.”
Pakistan Too Hot In The Final
Meanwhile, Pakistan were brilliant in the final and defeated India by 191 runs. was the star for Pakistan as he blasted 172, the highest score in the U19 Asia Cup final, and took the Boys in Green to 347-8. Chasing a monumental total, the Indian team succumbed to pressure and were bowled out for 156, suffering a massive defeat.
Following the win, there were calls to rope in Sarfaraz as Pakistan’s mentor for the T20 World Cup 2026. Sarfaraz previously led Pakistan to a win in the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2017 and he was also the captain of the U19 team that defeated India in U19 World Cup in 2004.