It wrapped up in Dubai Asia Cup. India grabbed their ninth title. They won by five wickets against Pakistan Asia Cup . The match was pretty thrilling. But then things got messy off the field. Asia Cup India would not take the trophy from the Asian Cricket Council chairman. That guy is Mohsin Naqvi. He is also Pakistan’s interior minister.

Asia Cup What was supposed to be a big celebration turned into some kind of diplomatic mess. The trophy just vanished. India had to pretend to lift it. Kind of awkward. Here is how it all went down.

The final match really set things up Asia Cup.

Dubai International Stadium was full of excitement
Asia Cup. India played Pakistan in this high-pressure game. Pakistan batted first. They only managed 146 all out. India chased it down. Tilak Varma was key with his unbeaten 69. They had five wickets left. Some main points from the game stood out. In Pakistan’s innings, Sahibzada Farhan scored 57. Fakhar Zaman added 46. That gave some fight. But Kuldeep Yadav took 4 for 30.

He broke their batting line. India lost early wickets
Asia Cup. They were at 10 for 2. Varma stayed calm. He put on 60 runs with Shivam Dube. Dube was not out on 33. That got them the win. Varma got Player of the Match. Abhishek Sharma was Player of the Tournament. His batting was explosive.

Then tensions really heated up. It was the trophy situation. The ceremony ran late by more than an hour. That became the big issue. India said no to taking the trophy from Naqvi. They pointed to his political job. Also his social media posts that stirred things. It led to this weird standoff.

At the ceremony, India’s team told organizers upfront

. They would not accept it from him. This was because of Indo-Pak issues. Like the recent Pahalgam attack. And India’s Operation Sindoor. The trophy went to India’s dressing room for a bit. But Naqvi took it away.

Asia Cup So the team just mimed lifting it. Pakistan’s captain Salman Ali Agha got mad. He threw the runners-up cheque aside. Naqvi put up a cryptic post on X. That made the drama worse.

The whole tournament had friction building. The trophy thing was just the end of it. It showed the bigger divide between India and Pakistan. There were a few flashpoints. India skipped handshakes in all three games against Pakistan. Pakistan talked about pulling out of the tournament over that. During India’s anthem, Pakistan players were chatting. That looked like disrespect. On the field, Jasprit Bumrah gave a cheeky send-off to Haris Rauf. It added to the fire.

Now people debate what this means for the rivalry in cricket

It touches on how cricket mixes with diplomacy. Indian fans like what the team did. They see it as taking a stand. Pakistan says it was not sportsmanlike. The BCCI wants to bring it up at the ICC conference. PM Modi called the win a sporting Sindoor. India gave the squad a 21 crore rupee bonus. They are celebrating. But without the trophy, it feels off Asia Cup.

It touches on how cricket mixes with diplomacy. Indian fans like what the team did. They see it as taking a stand. Pakistan says it was not sportsmanlike. The BCCI wants to bring it up at the ICC conference. PM Modi called the win a sporting Sindoor. India gave the squad a 21 crore rupee bonus. They are celebrating. But without the trophy, it feels off.

Looking forward, the ICC might step in.

They could help with handing over the trophy. Neutral venues will keep hosting these India-Pakistan games. The question is if they can avoid more trouble. Asia Cup Cricket used to bring the two nations together. Maybe it still can heal some gaps.

The Asia Cup 2025 sticks in mind for the great cricket. But also for the diplomatic split. India took a firm stance. Some say it was right. Others think it went too far. Cricket Insider keeps you updated on the game. Stay with us for more.