Asia Cup champions India did not collect the winners’ trophy after their victory on Sunday. According to PTI, the Indian cricket team refused to accept the trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s Interior Minister and head of the country’s cricket board. As Naqvi waited for the presentation, Indian players stayed about 15 yards away, refusing to move, which delayed the ceremony.

The Indian team management asked who would present the trophy, and ACC officials quickly realized their chairman was not acceptable to the team. When Naqvi eventually stepped on stage, Indian fans began booing and chanted "Bharat Mata Ki Jai." The Indian team made it clear they would not accept the trophy from him and planned to lodge an official protest. In response, an organizer quietly took the trophy into the Indian dressing room.

India had already signaled their stand to the ACC by not shaking hands with Pakistani players during the three Asia Cup matches or participating in the usual pre-toss photoshoots.

IND vs PAK, Final: Post-Match Tension

Pakistani players stayed in their dressing room for nearly an hour after the match, leaving their chairman alone and embarrassed. When Salman Agha and his teammates finally came out, the crowd loudly chanted, "Indiaaaa, Indiaaaa."

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It was expected that India would not accept the trophy from Naqvi, who had earlier posted cryptic videos referencing Cristiano Ronaldo’s “plane crash” celebration. This was widely seen as a reference to Pakistan’s claims that six Indian jets were downed during ‘Operation Sindoor’. This incident highlighted that the tension and rivalry cloaked within the India-Pakistan contest extended off the field as well as on it.