CHENNAI: Shortly after India refused to receive the Women's T20 Asia Cup Trophy from Asian Cricket Council chief Mohsin Naqvi, head coach Amol Muzumdar said that the decision was BCCI's call and the team stands by it.
"The stand has been taken by the BCCI. We stand by it. For us, this tournament is over. We are the champions. That's good enough. This tournament is over. Officially over for us," head coach Amol Muzumdar said in the post-match press conference after India's 72-run win over Sri Lanka that fetched them their eighth Asia Cup title. "It was on the big board that India champions of Asia Cup 2026. We are happy that we've turned out to be champions. Now, we look forward to the Asian Games," he added.
The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side had their perfect game in the summit clash with both Smriti Mandhana (59) and Shafali Verma (68) scoring fifties taking the team to 183/5 in 20 overs. In response, Sri Lanka were bundled out for 111 with Deepti Sharma (3/19) and NR Sree Charani (4/20) rising to the occasion.
While speculations were rife about whether India women will receive the trophy from Naqvi, who is also federal minister of Interior in Pakistan, in the lead up to the summit clash. When the Sri Lankan innings was winding down, visuals of BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, vice-president Rajiv Shukla and other officials having a brief exchange was shown on broadcast.
Shortly after the match got over, Saikia and Shukla were seen addressing the Indian team, but when the presentation finally began, India women were not on the field. And once Sri Lanka players received their runner-up medals, the presentation was concluded by the broadcaster as India refused to receive the trophy from Naqvi.
It all began last year when India and Pakistan men played each other months after the Pahalgam terror attack and the border conflicts. The Suryakumar Yadav-led team refused to shake hands with Pakistan players and furthermore did not receive the Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi, which is yet to be handed over to the Board of Control for Cricket in India. The India women head coach also clarified that there is no update regarding when and if at all the trophies - both men and women - will be received.
When pressed whether not receiving the trophy was against the spirit of the game, Muzumdar reiterated that they stand with BCCI in the decision taken by the board. "The stand has been taken by the BCCI and we're united and standing by it. 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," he signed off.
