Mohsin Naqvi ‘didn’t protest’ India denying him Women’s Asia Cup trophy, says Rajeev Shukla

India beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday, but the team did not collect the trophy from Naqvi NEW DELHI: BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla on Monday said the Indian women’s team’s decision not to receive the Asia Cup trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman Mohsin Naqvi was collectively accepted by the board, adding that Naqvi had “no objection” to it.India beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday, but the team did not collect the trophy from Naqvi. It was the second year in a row that the Indian team skipped receiving the Asia Cup trophy from the ACC chairman after the men’s team did the same during the 2025 Asia Cup following the Pahalgam terror attack.“We have discussed the matter among ourselves and decided not to accept it (the trophy) from him. It was our collective decision. He (Naqvi) too had no objection,” Shukla told reporters after arriving with the team at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.“We informed our team about it and he submitted it to whoever he had to and then left,” Shukla added as quoted by news agency PTI.Shukla’s comment was in line with BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia’s explanation after the final.Saikia said the board’s attitude had changed after the 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, while adding that India would continue to play Pakistan in international tournaments as per government policy.“Our men’s team won the Asia Cup a year and a half ago. And our whole situation, since the Pahalgam incident in April 2025, changed after that. So after that there was pressure on us from our citizens that we should not maintain any relations with our neighboring country and not play cricket with them. But our government has a policy that we have to play against every country in international tournaments,” Saikia told IANS.“But that doesn’t mean we will abide by all the conditions that were given to us. Our military conflict is still going on. One of the main leaders who is working against the interests of our country; we cannot take the trophy from him. The women’s team expressed solidarity with the decision taken by the men’s team last year,” Saikia said.Earlier, pictures surfaced of Saikia talking to Naqvi during the Asia Cup final in Dubai. Responding to criticism of these images, Shukla said that it was only a professional interaction during the match.“What Saikia ji said is absolutely correct. When you are at a match, everyone is there and interacts like a professional. That’s why I don’t think it should be criticized that much,” he said.