Here’s Why India Refuse to Take the Asia Cup Trophy

The women's cricket team from India declined to accept the Asia Cup trophy from the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President, Mohsin Naqvi, following their victory in the tournament. This decision was made by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), as head coach Amol Muzumdar revealed during a post-match press conference.

Muzumdar stated that the players honored the board's instructions and that the team is indeed Asia champions, despite not knowing when they will receive the trophy. The BCCI Vice President, Rajeev Shukla, attempted to convince the Indian players to accept the trophy, but the team remained firm in their decision. The decision of the Indian women's team to refuse the trophy mirrors that of the men's team, which also declined to receive the Asia Cup trophy after the 2025 final in Dubai.

This refusal extends to the Under-19 team, which declined to receive its runners-up medals from Naqvi after Pakistan's victory over India in the Under-19 Asia Cup final. The repeated acts of refusing to accept the trophy and medals have introduced a political dimension to the cricketing relations between India and Pakistan, leading to questions about whether sporting events are becoming entangled in the tensions between the two nations.