India Women lifted their eighth Women’s Asia Cup title after defeating Sri Lanka in a largely one-sided game. But like their men’s team, who did not get the Asia Cup trophy last September, the team had to leave without the trophy.
The presentation was delayed by almost 50 minutes, and when it did start, ACC President Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the chairman of PCB and Pakistan’s interior minister, only handed the medals to the runners-up, Sri Lanka, before the presentation ended abruptly.
On Monday morning, Devajit Saikia confirmed that the refusal to take the trophy from Naqvi was predecided and aligned with a “firm institutional decision” from the Indian government, who forbade the team from accepting trophy from Naqvi.
“We had taken a conscious decision considering all prevailing aspects, and our position had been communicated to the ACC in advance, that the Indian team would not participate in the trophy presentation under the circumstances,” Saikia told PTI. “Given the circumstances and the sentiments prevailing in the country, the BCCI felt that it would not be appropriate for the team to receive the trophy in the proposed manner.
“This was a firm institutional decision, reflective of the position we have maintained, and was not directed at the players, the tournament or the sport.”
India refuse trophy presentation with Naqvi
The cricketing relations between Pakistan and India are at an all-time low. Following a brief military standoff between the two nations in May last year, the captains of both teams have refrained from shaking hands whenever they met.
Although interviewing the winning captain at the post-match presentation is the norm, Harmanpreet was
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