Amol Muzumdar breaks silence on BCCI stance over women's Asia Cup trophy snub

DUBAI: India women’s head coach Amol Muzumdar said the team fully supported the stance taken by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and considered its Women’s Asia Cup 2026 campaign complete after winning the title.

Muzumdar said the team was focused on celebrating its championship triumph rather than the controversy surrounding the delayed trophy presentation, adding that India being declared champions on the stadium’s big screen was sufficient recognition of their achievement.

“That stand has been taken by BCCI and we stand by it,” India women’s head coach Amol Muzumdar said at the press conference.

“For us, this tournament is over, we are the champions. That’s good enough. It was on the big board that India are the champions of Asia Cup 2026. This tournament is officially over for us. We’re happy that we’re the champions and we look forward to the Asian Games,” he added.

The Indian women’s cricket team did not collect the winners’ trophy during the official presentation ceremony after defeating Sri Lanka in the final of the ACC Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2026 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.

The development followed a delay in the post-match presentation, with the Indian team reportedly unwilling to receive the trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Mohsin Naqvi, who also serves as chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).

The trophy presentation protocol had been finalised and the silverware was made available to the victorious Indian team. However, the players and coaching staff returned to the dressing room and did not come out to collect it.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan captain Chamari Athapaththu accepted the runners-up prize-money cheque from Naqvi.

ACC sources said the trophy remained available for the Indian team, while the trophy won by India’s men’s team at the 2025 Asia Cup was also still awaiting collection.

The sources also said Naqvi had not moved “an inch” from his previous position and continued to maintain the same stance.

The latest development bears similarities to the men’s Asia Cup final in 2025, when India defeated Pakistan by five wickets in Dubai.

Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan’s interior minister, had been scheduled to present the trophy to the Indian team. However, the players did not collect the silverware from him, resulting in an unusual delay in the post-match presentation.

The Indian players accepted their individual awards but did not receive the team trophy.

The latest incident came amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan during the tournament, with India also declining to shake hands with Pakistan players during their matches.