New Delhi: Indian teams continue to dominate the cricket field, but the ongoing diplomatic deadlock over trophies at award distribution ceremonies is not showing any signs of stopping. After the Men's Asia Cup in the year 2025, now a similar scene was seen in the title match of the Women's Asia Cup 2026. The Indian women's team won the Asia Cup crown by defeating Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final, but the ceremony ended without handing over the winning trophy to captain Harmanpreet Kaur and her team.
Diplomatic drama behind the scenes at Dubai Stadium
Just before the end of the title battle at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chief Mohsin Naqvi reached the stadium. Naqvi himself wanted to hand over the champion trophy to the Indian captain.
Indian Team celebrating with water bottle ???#AsiaCup #women'sAsiaCup pic.twitter.com/qLt2OWEtS2
— Darshika (@DarshikaRai3) September 14, 2026
In view of the tense atmosphere across the border, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) flatly refused to accept the trophy from the hands of the Pakistani Minister and PCB Chief.
After becoming champion on the field, the trophy stopped again
A practical proposal was made by the Indian side to ACC Vice President Khalid Al Zarooni to hand over the trophy, but Naqvi remained adamant on this matter. Hours of brainstorming took place to resolve the impasse, but no consensus could be reached.
Naqvi gave checks and medals only to the runner-up Sri Lankan team and the awards ceremony was concluded without giving any trophy to the Indian team. BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla and Secretary Devjit Saikia were present on the stage, but instead of sharing the stage, they went to the field and met the players directly.
Pure joy and unfiltered emotions🥳
🎥 Catch #TeamIndia's heartwarming moments after sealing the #WomensAsiaCup triumph🇮🇳🏆#INDvSL pic.twitter.com/e4zYfBAvSE
— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) September 14, 2026
The same history was repeated in September 2025 also
This entire incident refreshed the memories of the Men's Asia Cup held exactly a year ago in September 2025 on the same ground in Dubai. Then under the captaincy of Surya Kumar Yadav, the Indian men's team defeated Pakistan and won the title. Even at that time, Mohsin Naqvi was present as ACC Chief and the Indian team had strictly avoided accepting the trophy from him. The Indian team then symbolically celebrated the victory by raising their hands in the air. A year later, in the Women's Asia Cup too, BCCI and Team India maintained their national stand and made it clear that sports and the country's policies go hand in hand.