BCCI informed ACC of stance before India women refused Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi - The Indian Express

Less than a year after India’s men’s team refused to accept the Asia Cup trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi in Dubai, the women’s team followed suit at the same venue on Sunday. After beating Sri Lanka by 72 runs to win a record-extending eighth Women’s Asia Cup title, Harmanpreet Kaur and her teammates refused to receive the trophy from Naqvi during the post-match presentation.

A source told The Indian Express that the BCCI had informed ACC officials that if Naqvi attended the presentation and India won the final, the team would not accept the trophy from him.

There was also a lengthy wait before the presentation began, with around 40 minutes passing between the fall of Sri Lanka’s final wicket and the start of the ceremony.

The match officials were first presented with their mementoes before Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu and her teammates and coaching staff came forward one by one to receive their runners-up medals. Athapaththu then collected the runners-up cheque from Naqvi, who was present in his capacity as ACC president, before speaking to the broadcaster.

The broadcast ended following Athapaththu’s interview, without showing India’s players receiving their winners’ medals or the Asia Cup trophy.

India head coach Amol Muzumdar said the team stood by the BCCI’s decision not to accept the trophy from Naqvi and considered the tournament over after being crowned champions.

“That stand has been taken by BCCI and we stand by it. For us, this tournament is over. We are the champions. That’s good enough. It was on the big board that India champions of Asia Cup 2026. This tournament is officially over for us. We are happy that we have turned out to be champions. Now, we look forward to the Asian Games,” Muzumdar said at the post-match press conference.

When asked when India could receive the trophy, Muzumdar said there was no clarity yet.

“No news as yet. So, I cannot answer that,” he said.

The incident brought back memories of the men’s Asia Cup final at the same venue last September, when India’s refusal to receive the trophy from Naqvi led to a presentation ceremony that stretched for more than an hour after the match had ended.

India beat Pakistan by five wickets in the men’s Asia Cup final in Dubai last September, with Tilak Varma finishing with an unbeaten 69. The drama, however, continued for more than an hour after the winning runs were hit.

India refused to accept the Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s Interior Minister and chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The tournament was played against the backdrop of heightened tensions between the countries following the Pahalgam terror attack and the military conflict in May.

India had also declined to shake hands with Pakistan’s players during their three meetings in the tournament.

The presentation was delayed by more than an hour as an impasse developed over who would hand India the trophy. The Indian team made it clear that they would not receive it from Naqvi. Reports at the time said India were willing to accept the trophy from Emirates Cricket Board vice-chairman Khalid Al Zarooni, but Naqvi insisted on presenting it as ACC president.

Mohsin Naqvi was standing on the podium to present the trophy. When Smriti Mandhana came out and saw him standing there, she went back into the dressing room.😂🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/al1fQ6wXu5

Individual awards were still handed out. Kuldeep Yadav, Abhishek Sharma and Tilak received their awards from other dignitaries while Naqvi was present on stage. Pakistan captain Salman Agha collected the runners-up cheque before presenter Simon Doull announced that he had been informed by the ACC that India would not be collecting their team awards.

The ceremony then ended without the champions receiving either the trophy or their winners’ medals. An official removed the trophy from the presentation area, leaving India to celebrate without it. Suryakumar and his teammates responded by mimicking a trophy lift during their celebrations.

Suryakumar later said the decision not to accept the trophy from Naqvi had been taken by the players themselves and that nobody had instructed them to do so. He also expressed disappointment that the champions had been left without the silverware they had won.

The BCCI backed the team’s position. Secretary Devajit Saikia said India had decided not to receive the trophy from Naqvi because of his position as a senior Pakistani political leader, but argued that this did not entitle the ACC president to withhold the trophy and medals. The board subsequently said it would raise the matter at the ICC.

The dispute continued after the tournament. Naqvi maintained that India could collect the trophy from him, while reports in October said the silverware remained at the ACC headquarters in Dubai.

Based in Mumbai, Shankar Narayan has over five years of experience and his reporting has ranged from the Ranji Trophy to ICC World Cups, and he writes extensively on women’s cricket. ... Read More

Having spent years covering Mumbai’s local "maidan" cricket circuit, Devendra Pandey brings a unique ground-level perspective to his reporting. ... Read More

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