Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha was made to wait by Indian counterpart Suryakumar Yadav after the former left the stage in a rush at the end of the all-captain press conference ahead of the Asia Cup 2025. The continental showpiece starts on Tuesday with Afghanistan taking on Hong Kong at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

At the end of the press conference, Salman Agha was the first to leave the stage along with Oman and Hong Kong captains Yasim Murtaza and Jatinder Singh respectively. On the other hand, Suryakumar had a light chat with Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan before shaking hands with Sri Lanka’s Charith Asalanka, Bangladesh’s Litton Das and UAE’s Muhammad Waseem. They all also hugged each other before walking down.

While Suryakumar was busy on stage, Salman Agha waited beside the exit door. The Indian skipper first shook hands with Murtaza and then turned to Salman Agha before completing the formalities with Jatinder.

In fact, this was the first time both India and Pakistan players shared the same stage after Pahalgam terror attack in April 22. India will kick off their campaign against the UAE on September 10 in Dubai, whereas Pakistan will clash with Oman at the same venue two days later.

Suryakumar emphasies ‘aggression is essential in cricket’

Ahead of the high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan on September 14, Suryakumar emphasised that aggression is essential in cricket and believes that without aggression, it’s challenging to succeed in the sport.

“Aggression is always there on the field, and without aggression, I don’t think you can play this sport, and I am sure I am very excited to take the field,” Suryakumar told the media. Salman Agha emphasised that every player is distinct with their own approach to the game.

“You don’t need to say anything to any player because everyone is individually very different. If someone wants to be aggressive in the field, they are more than welcome to do that,” Agha told the media.