On 28 September Asia Cup 2025 India’s spectacular victory over Pakistan in the final should have been a moment of celebration. But the team returned home without taking the trophy, causing controversy in the cricket world.
The case is to the presentation ceremony after the match in Dubai. The Indian players refused to take the trophy as Pakistan’s internal minister Mohsin Naqvi wanted to give him. Naqvi is also the Chairman of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) officials tried to intervene, but Naqvi remained adamant on his decision. As a result, the Indian players stood on the field and then went out without taking the trophy. This view was very rare in cricket, where the winning team left the field without their winning title.
According to a cricbing report, Naqvi has now accepted that the Asia Cup trophy will be handed over to the Indian team. But he has laid a disputed condition – trophy and medals will be given only in a formal ceremony, and they will be handed over to the players alone.
The matter has become more complicated by his demand, as the BCCI’s possibility of obeying such proposals is extremely low, especially given political tension between the two countries. Because of this, the future of the trophy still remains uncertain. The atmosphere is hot since the final and now there is pressure on cricket administrators from all over Asia to find a solution that respects India’s victory and does not give rise to any new controversy.
The Asia Cup Trophy controversy will be the biggest issue of the ACC meeting to be held on 30 September. In this meeting, the officials will discuss the next steps and the BCCI will emphasize that India’s victory gets the right respect.
In addition, the BCCI is preparing to take up the matter globally as well. India will register a formal objection to this at the ICC’s annual general meeting to be held on 24 November. Also, there will be a demand from the ICC to intervene and make clear rules for this, so that there are no such disputes in future.
