The Indian women's cricket team won the Asia Cup by beating Sri Lanka by 72 runs, but the players did not accept the trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman from Pakistan. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side lifted their record-extending eighth Asia Cup title, yet the players did not come out on the field for the post-tournament presentation ceremonies.
Why India Refused the Asia Cup Trophy
India head coach Amol Muzumdar addressed the matter in the post-match press conference. He made it clear that the decision not to take the trophy was not the team's own call.
"India are officially the (Asia Cup) champions. Trophy or no trophy doesn't matter to us. This is BCCI's stand (to not take trophy from Naqvi). We can't say anything on this." — Amol Muzumdar, India head coach
His words show that the players were following a directive from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The team did not act on its own. The refusal was an official position taken at the board level.
A Repeat of Last Year's Trophy Impasse
This is not the first time this has happened. The trophy impasse continued for the second year in a row, which means the same situation played out in the previous edition of the tournament as well.
The pattern is now clear. India wins on the field, but the presentation ceremony becomes a point of tension because of who is handing over the trophy. The ACC chairman's role in the ceremony has become the sticking point.
What This Means for the Tournament
The Asia Cup is a regional competition run by the ACC, and the chairman's position is currently held by a representative from Pakistan. India's decision not to accept the trophy from him is a visible signal of the strain in cricketing relations between the two countries.
- India won the final by 72 runs against Sri Lanka
- It was India's eighth Asia Cup title — a record
- The players stayed off the field during the presentation
- The coach confirmed the BCCI made the call
- The same impasse happened last year as well
Our Take: A Win Overshadowed by Politics
In our view, this is a sad situation for women's cricket. The Indian team played excellent cricket and won the final by a big margin of 72 runs. They earned their eighth title. That achievement should be the story. Instead, the headline is about a trophy that nobody collected.
To put it plainly, the players are caught in the middle. They did their job on the field. The decision about the trophy came from the board, not from them. Coach Muzumdar's comment makes that clear — he said the team cannot say anything on this.
The bigger question is what this means for the Asia Cup as a tournament. If the winning team will not take the trophy from the ACC chairman, the presentation ceremony loses its meaning. This has now happened two years in a row, so it is not a one-time issue. It is a pattern.
For fans, the message is simple: the cricket was good, but the politics around it is not going away. Until the underlying tensions between the boards are resolved, we should expect the same scene again next time. The winners deserve better than a trophy ceremony that turns into a controversy.
