India won the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 in convincing fashion, beating Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, September 13. It was a record-extending eighth Asia Cup title for the Indian women’s team.
But the celebrations took an unusual turn after the match. The Indian players did not come out for the official trophy presentation and did not accept the Asia Cup trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi.
Naqvi is also the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and Pakistan’s Interior Minister. The decision was not taken suddenly after the final. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had already informed the ACC about its position before the presentation.
India Dominate Sri Lanka in the Final
On the field, there was little doubt about which team deserved the title. India posted 183 for five after being asked to bat first. Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma gave the team a flying start, adding 129 runs for the opening wicket. Shafali scored 68 from 39 balls, while Mandhana made 59 from 39 deliveries. Their aggressive batting put Sri Lanka under pressure from the first few overs.
Sri Lanka needed 184 runs to win, but India’s bowlers never allowed the chase to settle. Captain Chamari Athapaththu fought with 36 from 32 balls, but the rest of the batting order struggled against India’s bowling attack.
Left-arm spinner Shree Charani was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with four wickets for 20 runs. Deepti Sharma also played a major role with three wickets as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 111 in 20 overs. India therefore won by 72 runs and secured their eighth Women’s Asia Cup title.
Why Did India Refuse to Accept the Trophy?
The trophy controversy was linked to the presence of Mohsin Naqvi at the presentation ceremony. According to BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, the decision was a conscious institutional call by the board. The BCCI had told the ACC before the final that the Indian team would not attend the podium if Naqvi was the person presenting the trophy.
Saikia pointed to the current political situation between India and Pakistan and said the wounds from the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack had not healed. He also explained that the women’s team’s decision was meant to maintain the same position taken by the Indian men’s team in the previous Asia Cup.
This made it clear that the players’ absence from the ceremony was not an emotional reaction to something that happened during the final. It was a decision that had been discussed and communicated beforehand.
Presentation Ceremony Turns Into an Awkward Scene
The post-match ceremony was delayed by nearly 50 minutes as the situation remained unresolved. Sri Lanka came out and received their runners-up medals. Captain Chamari Athapaththu also received the runners-up cheque from Naqvi. However, the Indian players remained away from the presentation area.
With India not coming out, the ceremony was eventually brought to an end. The Indian players did not receive their tournament medals on the official stage and did not collect the Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi. The unusual ending quickly became one of the biggest talking points of the tournament.
Amol Muzumdar Backs the BCCI Decision
India head coach Amol Muzumdar later made it clear that the team was fully behind the BCCI’s position. Muzumdar said the stand had been taken by the BCCI and that the entire team was united behind it. He also stressed that India had won the tournament and that, from the team’s point of view, winning the Asia Cup was what mattered.
His comments also ended speculation that the players had independently decided to skip the ceremony.
Same Situation After Men’s Asia Cup Win
The incident also brought back memories of the 2025 Men’s Asia Cup final. The Indian men’s team had also refused to accept the Asia Cup trophy from Naqvi after winning the tournament. The latest incident involving the women’s team therefore follows the same line.
For the BCCI, the issue is bigger than one trophy presentation. The board has maintained its position because of the wider relationship between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack and the tensions that followed.
India Leave Dubai as Champions
India may have left the official presentation without the trophy in their hands, but there is no question about who won the tournament.
Harmanpreet Kaur’s side defeated Sri Lanka by 72 runs, lifted the Women’s Asia Cup for the eighth time and finished the tournament as champions. The unusual trophy presentation has now become part of the story, but the result on the field remains clear. India won the Asia Cup. The trophy, however, was not collected from the official podium.
