The Harmanpreet Kaur -led Indian women’s cricket team clinched a record-extending eighth Women’s Asia Cup title in Dubai on Sunday, defeating Sri Lanka by 72 runs. The final ended at 11:25 PM IST, while the post-match presentation ceremony did not begin until 12:05 AM IST (Monday). Same venue, same drama. What followed was another Asia Cup trophy presentation controversy involving the Indian cricket team and Asian Cricket Council chief Mohsin Naqvi, who is also Pakistan’s Interior Minister.
It brought back memories of the 2025 Men’s Asia Cup final (September 28), coincidentally at the same venue, Dubai International Stadium, when India beat Pakistan in the final but the post-match presentation was delayed. After the Indian team won the final, the players were in a huddle. Former Sri Lanka player Farveez Maharoof started the delayed presentation ceremony by calling the names of match officials and the runner-up Sri Lanka team. Just when everybody thought it was India’s turn to arrive on the stage, he stated that the post-match presentation ceremony was over. The point of contention was the presence of Mohsin Naqvi. A similar controversy appeared to unfold this time as well. BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla and secretary Devajit Saikia were present too. Saikia and Shukla presented Nandani Sharma with a medal for best fielding. Saikia addressed the players and congratulated them.
This was in line with the men’s team’s protocol, as they too had also denied taking the trophy from the ACC president after winning the T20 Asia Cup in 2025 following their victory over Pakistan in the final. Earlier, Shafali Verma and vice-captain Smriti Mandhana struck forceful fifties, while the bowlers, led by Sree Charani, produced an equally impressive effort as India crushed Sri Lanka by 72 runs to clinch a record-extending eighth Women’s Asia Cup title on Sunday. Earlier, after electing to bat, Mandhana, who scored her 36th T20I fifty, and Shafali, whose 24-ball fifty was the fastest in Women’s Asia Cup history, shut the Sri Lankans out of the contest. In fact, Shafali eclipsed the 25-ball fifty Mandhana made in the tournament’s 2022 edition.
The stalemate continued for nearly an hour before Naqvi ordered the men’s Asia Cup trophy to be taken away from the stadium, according to reports. However, after that India did not turn up to take the trophy from Naqvi.
