By Asif Naveed
Web Desk; The Asia Cup 2025 final ended in fresh controversy as the Indian cricket team refused to accept the winner’s trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who also heads the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The incident occurred after India defeated Pakistan in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday. According to sources, the decision was made on the directives of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which had objected to Naqvi personally presenting the trophy.
Despite pressure, Naqvi stood firm, insisting that he would present the trophy himself. As a result, the post-match ceremony concluded without the traditional trophy handover, drawing global attention to off-field tensions between the two rivals.
While Pakistan players accepted their runners-up medals and prize money with sportsmanship, the Indian squad remained on the ground expecting to receive the trophy, which organisers instead carried away.
The closing ceremony was already delayed by an hour. Individual awards were distributed, with India’s Kuldeep Yadav, Shivam Dube, and Tilak Varma recognized for their performances, while Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha collected the runners-up cheque. Kuldeep later received the best bowler award, and Abhishek Sharma was named Player of the Tournament.
The ceremony ended abruptly as presenter Simon Doull announced: “I have been informed by the ACC that the Indian cricket team will not be collecting their awards tonight. So that does conclude the post-match presentation.”
The controversy follows repeated tensions during the tournament, including Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav’s refusal to shake hands with Pakistan’s Salman Ali Agha at the toss for the third time, continuing a pattern from earlier matches.
