![Lakshya Raichandani Defends Team's Aggressive Celebrations Vs Pakistan [Source: @BCCI/X]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1794763022337_LakshyaRaichandaniIndiaU19Pakistan.jpg?type=hq)
Lakshya Raichandani Defends Team's Aggressive Celebrations Vs Pakistan [Source: @BCCI/X]
India U19 team captain Lakshya Raichandani defended his team after they were called out for an aggressive and dramatic celebration against the Pakistan U19 team. It happened after the men in blue won the U19 Asia Cup 2026 finale with a thrilling last-ball finish.
In the final, India had to chase 338 runs, and the pressure peaked in the last over, when the team needed 8 runs to win. Mohit Ulva smashed a four off the final ball and led India to a dramatic 1-wicket victory.
Lakshya Raichandani comes out in support of India U19 players
Naturally, the Indian team was pumped, and the players stormed onto the field with dramatic celebrations. Some gestures by a few players were aggressive as they mocked the Pakistan U19 team as well as their fans in the stands.
However, despite backlash, India U19 captain Lakshya Raichandani defended his team. Talking to Sports Today, he said their celebrations were a natural reaction to the pressure and emotions of an India-Pakistan final.
"But as you know, India-Pakistan matches are always tense and aggressive. We had put in so much effort to win the final, and the emotions naturally came out. I think it was a normal celebration. We had lost a match earlier, and we were hungry to win this one. As I said, the emotions came out. The celebration was normal. The boys perhaps over-dramatised it a little," Raichandani said.
Apparently, the team was already pumped as they had lost the previous game against Pakistan in the league stages. Hence, the revenge in the finale led to an emotional outburst.
Lakshya revealed that he did not try to stop his teammates from celebrating, as he felt the emotions were normal. He believed they deserved to enjoy the moment after winning such an important match.
"I didn't do anything. I let them celebrate. It was a good feeling. You can't stop them after winning. It was a good memory and a special feeling. There isn't much I can say. The celebration was normal, and the emotions came out. It was a normal and emotional moment. The match was an emotional rollercoaster. We just wanted to play calmly, and hopefully, we managed to do that," he added.
Lakshya Raichandani’s social media account disabled
Interestingly, following the dramatic U19 Asia Cup 2026 finale between India and Pakistan, Lakshya Raichandani’s Instagram account was disabled. It happened after the skipper posted pictures and videos of the team’s celebrations.
The captain was surprised by the action. He felt the celebration was not serious or aggressive enough to justify disabling his account.
"I felt it wasn't that serious or aggressive for my account to be disabled. It was normal, and I didn't feel it was something that warranted disabling my account," Lakshya explained.
Regardless, amid the controversy, the India U19 team also received support from the BCCI. The board secretary Devajit Saikia said that players are allowed to celebrate after a title victory.
And more importantly, the U19 team is young, inexperienced and raw. They are relatively emotional, and it tends to burst out in such moments. Hence, the BCCI has expressed their full support to the players.
