Position taken by BCCI and we stand by it: Muzumdar on not accepting Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Indian women's cricket team head coach Amol Muzumdar said the side fully supports the BCCI's stand of not accepting the Asia Cup trophy from the Asian Cricket Council's Pakistani chief Mohsin Naqvi, and winning the tournament is "good enough" for the players.

The Harmanpreet Kaur-led team defeated Sri Lanka comprehensively in the final on Sunday (September 14, 2026) by 72 runs to win the tournament for a record-extending eighth time. But it refused to take the trophy from the incumbent ACC chief, who is also his country's Interior Minister besides being the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board.

"That stand has been taken by BCCI, and we stand by it. For us, this tournament is over. We're the champions — that's good enough. It was on the big board that India champions of Asia Cup 2026," Muzumdar told reporters after the match when asked about not accepting the trophy from Naqvi.

"This tournament is over; officially over for us. We're happy that we've turned out to be champions. Now, we look forward for the Asian Games," he said.

The Indian women's team’s refusal to accept the trophy from Naqvi was a repeat of the position first taken in the 2025 men's edition of the tournament. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side did not accept the winner's trophy from Naqvi to protest against the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people that same year.

Muzumdar said he was not aware of any possibility of the team receiving the trophy in the coming days.

The men's team too has not received the trophy till date as it lies locked at ACC headquarters in Dubai with Naqvi insisting that only he will hand it out.

When asked if such instances should be stopped in sports, the Indian head coach replied, "Well, as I said earlier, my answer remains the same, my friend. That the stand has been taken by BCCI and we're united and standing by it. Absolutely."

"For us, this tournament is officially over. The fact that we're champions, we're really glad and I'm really proud of every single person in this unit, including the support staff and the players, needless to say.

"We're looking forward to the Asian Games now. This is officially over," he added referring to the quadrennial showpiece beginning September 19 in Japan where both the Indian men's and women's teams will enter as defending champions.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.