‘If India truly wants trophy, collect it from me’: PCB chairman Naqvi sets bizarre condition

LAHORE: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman and Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Mohsin Naqvi claimed that he never apologised to the BCCI for the trophy-lifting fiasco that unfolded after the Asia Cup final. In his outlandish rant, a defiant Naqvi kept a bizarre condition — If India “truly” wanted the trophy, they could come to the ACC office to collect it from him.

The nerve-jangling final in Dubai on Sunday ended with a five-wicket victory for India, who gunned down a 147-run target to clinch their ninth Asia Cup title. Soon after the famed success, pandemonium ensued, with the post-match presentation being delayed by 90 minutes.

The root cause of the delay in the ceremony was India’s refusal to accept the trophy from Naqvi, who also serves as Pakistan’s Minister for Interior. After nearly an hour of waiting, the stage was set, but unexpectedly, an official removed the Asia Cup trophy from its place on a raised dais and carried it off the ground without explanation.

PCB Chief Mohsin Naqvi has apologized to the BCCI over the trophy controversy but has refused to return the trophy and medals. He is reportedly flying to Lahore today. The dispute remains unresolved.

Video surfaces of the moment Pakistan stole the trophy from India pic.twitter.com/YlRv14I11W

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During the ACC meeting held on Tuesday, various reports surfaced which claimed that Naqvi had apologised to the BCCI for the chaos that unfolded after the final. However, a day later, Naqvi categorically denied the reports and placed an out-of-the-way condition about returning the trophy to the title winners.

“Indian media thrives on lies, not facts. Let me make it absolutely clear: I have done nothing wrong and I have never apologised to the BCCI nor will I ever do so. This fabricated nonsense is nothing but cheap propaganda, aimed only at misleading their own people”, Naqvi wrote on X as quoted from Geo News.

“Unfortunately, India continues to drag politics into cricket, damaging the very spirit of the game. As ACC Chairman, I was ready to hand over the trophy that very day, and I am still ready now. If they truly want it, they are welcome to come to the ACC office and collect it from me”, he concluded.

According to Geo News, no formal decision was made during the ACC meeting regarding the handing over of the trophy to India. Even though Sunday night ended without India revelling in the special moment, skipper Suryakumar Yadav and his troops did celebrate their triumph. Posing for the cameras, Suryakumar replicated his predecessor Rohit Sharma’s slow-walk T20 World Cup 2024 winning celebration with the rest of the team, with fireworks going off in the background. (ANI)