DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — India Twenty20 skipper Suryakumar Yadav has claimed that his team was denied the chance to lift the 2025 Asia Cup trophy, after it beat Pakistan in the final by five wickets on Sunday.
Tilak Varma’s nerveless half-century helped at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and claim its ninth Asia Cup – second in the T20 format.
Post the final, the presentation ceremony was delayed for nearly an hour. The Pakistan team, led by captain Salman Agha, arrived late for the ceremony. However, there was further delay as the Indian team refused to accept the trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chief Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the chief of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the Interior Minister of Pakistan.
“This is one thing which I have never seen since I started playing cricket, started following cricket – a champion team is denied a trophy, that too a hard earned one,” said Yadav in the post-match media conference. “I feel we deserved it. And I can’t say anything more.”
“If you tell me about trophies, mine are sitting in the dressing room, all 14 guys with me, the support staff – those are the real trophies throughout this journey in the Asia Cup.”
A statement on the ACC website had started on Saturday that Naqvi would hand over the trophy to the Asia Cup winners. However, it is understood that the Indian team did not want to receive the trophy from him – in line with their refusal to shake hands with the Pakistan team in any of the three matches the two sides played during the tournament, both at the toss and at the end of the match.
While the Indian team had refused to accept the trophy from Naqvi, he reportedly refused to step down from the presentation ceremony altogether. Before the ceremony began, an official also removed the Asia Cup trophy from the presentation podium. No explanation was provided from the ACC for this action.
“Ladies and gentlemen, 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,” Simon Doull, former New Zealand cricketer and broadcaster, announced.
This was after Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma had collected their individual awards – player of the match and tournament, respectively. Wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav also collected an award for his bowling performances through the tournament.
All three received their awards from sponsor representatives, and did not acknowledge or shake hands with Naqvi on the presentation stage.
The Pakistan team received its runners-up medals from Aminul Islam, the Bangladesh Cricket Board president, and the check from Naqvi.
Eventually, the Indian team celebrated without the trophy or its individual winners’ medals.
India team to lodge protest
“We have decided not to take the Asia Cup trophy from the ACC chairman, who happens to be one of the main leaders of Pakistan,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia told Indian news media outlet, ANI. “But that does not mean that the gentleman will take away the trophy with him, along with the medals. So it is very unfortunate and we hope that the trophy and the medals will be returned to India as soon as possible.
“There is an ICC conference in November in Dubai. In the next conference, we are going to launch a very serious and very strong protest against the act of the ACC chairperson.”
The Asia Cup marked a resumption of cricket ties between India and Pakistan only months after the neighboring countries were engaged in a tense border situation in May that disrupted the IPL and the Pakistan Super League.
India’s cricketers refused to shake hands with Pakistan after their first and second games at the Asia Cup. Pakistan even threatened to quit the tournament over the “handshake controversy”, which ultimately came to naught.
Suryakumar Yadav was reprimanded for his statements after the first game, while Haris Rauf was penalized for his on-field antics during the second game.
There were no handshakes after Sunday’s final either, or earlier at the toss. Skipper Yadav spoke with former India cricketer-turned-broadcaster Ravi Shastri, while his counterpart Agha talked with former Pakistan cricketer-turned-broadcaster Waqar Younis.
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