Trophy controversy continues weeks after India’s Asia Cup triumph
The dramatic post-match standoff has overshadowed India’s Asia Cup 2025 victory, after the Indian cricket team refused to accept the trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president and Pakistan’s interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi.
The presentation ceremony on September 28 was marked by tension and delay. During the broadcast, Simon Doull noted the absence of the Indian team from the main ceremony:
“I have been informed by the Asian Cricket Council that the Indian cricket team will not be collecting their awards tonight,” Doull said.
With no trophy handover on the night, Naqvi reportedly left the venue with the silverware, which has since remained in the ACC office in Dubai.
BCCI demands formal explanation and trophy return
Now, the BCCI has written an official letter to the ACC, demanding that the trophy and medals be handed over to India without further delay, and calling for clarity on why they were withheld at the venue.
In a letter accessed by India Today, the BCCI stated:
“BCCI therefore demands immediate handover of the Asia Cup 2025 trophy and medals to the Indian team/BCCI and a written explanation setting out how and why the awards were withheld at the venue, and on what authority the ACC President took possession of them.”
The BCCI also outlined the need for institutional safeguards moving forward:
“BCCI also requires a formal assurance that such a departure from established norms will not recur in any ACC tournament. These are the same demands articulated in our letter of 30 September 2025, which the ACC has yet to satisfy.”
The board gave the ACC a 48-hour deadline to confirm the exact location of the trophy and the procedure for its return.
Saikia confirms next steps if Naqvi fails to respond
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, speaking exclusively to India Today, confirmed that the board is still awaiting a response from Naqvi. He noted that if the ACC president fails to engage, the BCCI will formally escalate the matter to the International Cricket Council.
Saikia emphasized that the board is proceeding methodically but is committed to seeing the issue through. This formal statement came in parallel with the release of the letter accessed by the publication.
Regional support builds for BCCI’s position
The BCCI’s stance has found strong backing within the ACC. According to PTI, both Sri Lanka Cricket and the Afghanistan Cricket Board have reportedly sided with India, urging Naqvi to resolve the issue and return the trophy.
“The BCCI secretary, BCCI’s ACC representative Rajeev Shukla and representatives of other member boards including Sri Lanka Cricket and Afghanistan had written to the ACC president last week over handing the trophy to India,” an ACC source told PTI
However, the response from Naqvi was firm.
“But his response was that someone from BCCI should come to Dubai and take the trophy from him. So that matter has still not moved. BCCI has made its stance clear that it won’t be receiving the trophy from him. So the matter will most likely be decided in the ICC meeting,” the same ACC source added.
Naqvi insists on personal handover of trophy
Despite growing pressure, Naqvi has refused to hand over the trophy unless it is done in person.
“Naqvi has given clear instructions that only he will hand over the trophy in person (whenever that happens) to the Indian team or BCCI,” source close to Naqvi said, as quoted by PTI
The condition has been flatly rejected by the BCCI, which maintains that the trophy should have been awarded on the night of the final and not be subject to personal or political conditions.
India’s refusal was deliberate, says BCCI
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has been vocal about the board’s decision to refuse the trophy from Naqvi. Speaking to ANI after the final of the Asia Cup, he said:
“We have decided not to accept the Asia Cup 2025 trophy from the ACC chairman, who happens to be one of the senior leaders of Pakistan. That was a conscious decision.”
He further criticized Naqvi’s actions:
“This does not give him the right to take the trophy and the medals with him. It is extremely unfortunate and unsportsmanlike. We hope the trophy and medals will be returned to India as soon as possible,” Saikia added.
Diplomatic standoff clouds cricketing victory
As the political tension simmers, the BCCI has made clear that it will not back down until the issue is resolved to its satisfaction. The trophy remains in Dubai, under Naqvi’s orders not to be moved without his explicit consent, while cricket’s global governance body may soon be called upon to mediate what has now become a geopolitical standoff in sport.
