The presentation ceremony for the Women’s Asia Cup cricket final in Dubai turned controversial after winners India refused to accept the trophy from the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan’s interior minister, amid ongoing political tensions between the South Asian neighbours.
India beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final on Sunday to reclaim the crown from the 2024 champions but the post-match ceremony was delayed by more than 45 minutes as players from both sides waited outside their respective dressing rooms.
The match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium ended close to 9:50pm (17:50 GMT) but the ceremony did not get under way until 10:40pm (18:40 GMT).
Once the temporary stage for the handing over of awards was set up, Naqvi was seen standing alongside other dignitaries as the ceremony began. Match officials were the first to be presented with their medallions before the Sri Lankan players stepped up for their medals.
Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu received the runners-up award from Naqvi and then proceeded to speak about her team’s performance.
However, no individual awards, including Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament, were handed out, and neither was the Indian team called up to receive its medals or the trophy.
India won the tournament for a record-extending eighth time.
The tournament’s official social media accounts did not post any trophy celebration images.
The Indian Women’s cricket team’s social media account posted a group photo of the team and coaching staff in what appears to be an empty stadium shortly after the conclusion of the award ceremony.
Why did India refuse the trophy?
Images and videos posted on social media showed the Indian team and support staff standing in a circle outside their dressing room ahead of the ceremony. They were not seen near the stage once it got under way and no explanation was provided for their absence.
The tournament’s organisers, the ACC, and the Indian cricket board did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for a comment.
The scene was reminiscent of a similar incident from last September, when India beat Pakistan to win the Men’s Asian Cup at the same venue but refused to accept the trophy from Naqvi, who headed the ACC then, as well.
He is also the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Shortly after the row at the men’s final, Devajit Saikia, the chairman of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), confirmed that India’s refusal was based on Naqvi’s presence as the leading figure of the ceremony.
“We have decided not to take the Asia Cup trophy from the ACC chairman, who happens to be one of the main [political] leaders of Pakistan,” Saikia then told Indian media.
Troubled India-Pakistan ties
India-Pakistan relations have been in trouble for years. But they plummeted further after armed attackers killed 26 men in Pahalgam, a tourism site in Indian-administered Kashmir, on April 22, 2025.
The Resistance Front (TRF), an armed group which demands Kashmir’s independence, claimed responsibility for the attack. India alleges that TRF is a branch of the Pakistan-based armed group, the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), an allegation Islamabad denies.
Following the attack, the two countries scaled back diplomatic relations, and India suspended its participation in the Indus Waters Treaty.
On May 7, 2025, India launched multiple missile attacks on sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir under what it called Operation Sindoor. India said it struck nine sites in Pakistan, which said dozens of civilians were killed.
Three days later, Pakistan launched Operation Bunyan Marsoos, targeting at least six Indian military sites and killing at least five Indians, according to Indian authorities.
On the same day, the two sides reached a ceasefire agreement, which was announced by United States President Donald Trump.
Has the political tension affected India-Pakistan cricket?
Since the May 2025 hostilities, every meeting of the Indian and Pakistani cricket teams – men, women or junior – has been marred by bitterness between both sides.
During the Men’s Asia Cup of 2025, the Indian team did not partake in the customary handshake with their Pakistani counterparts at the pre-match toss and post-match walkoff. The teams met three times in the tournament, which became hugely political due to the players’ hostile behaviour towards each other.
When Pakistan faced India in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 in Sri Lanka, the teams steered clear of handshakes and repeated the practice at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup earlier this year in England, as well as their group-stage match in the Women’s Asia Cup.
Following the Men’s Asia Cup final fiasco, political experts told Al Jazeera the incident seemed “inevitable” under the tense backdrop.
When is the next India vs Pakistan cricket match?
Both countries will participate in the men’s and women’s tournaments at the upcoming Asian Games in Japan.
While the teams are not grouped together in the early stage as they have received direct entry into the knockouts, the possibility of an India vs Pakistan final remains in both competitions.
