Mohsin Naqvi argues he was ‘made to look like a cartoon’; BCCI tells him ‘Asia Cup trophy not your personal belonging’

The BCCI secretary, Devajit Saikia, stated on Monday that the board would lodge a “strong" response against Naqvi during the ICC Meeting later this year. Rajeev Shukla, an executive board member of the ACC and the current vice-president of the BCCI, tore into Naqvi and his antics during the ACC meeting, a sign of things to come as tensions are set to escalate between the two powerhouses.

An insider who was privy to all the happenings within the ACC board meeting confirmed to Hindustan Times that the BCCI were firm in their demand of having the trophy delivered to them as soon as possible. Naqvi argued that he was “disrespected” and had no prior knowledge about India's desire not to take the trophy from him.

“When the medals and Asia Cup trophy will be handed over to India, this decision has been deferred as there was no solution found during the ACC meeting. Naqvi argued that he was disrespected and had no prior knowledge of the Indian team's decision not to receive the trophy to him. He claimed that the BCCI never wrote an email to him about such a situation,” sources privy to developments told Hindustan Times.

“However, Rajeev Shukla, who represented the BCCI in the meeting, argued that the trophy is not a personal belonging of any individual, as it is a property of the ACC and should be handed over to the rightful winner. Since there was no amicable solution, the decision has been deferred to another meeting,” he added.

Also Read: Mohsin Naqvi decides to hand over Asia Cup medals to India, but has a demand that is unlikely to be entertained: Report

Internal details from the meeting also suggest that Naqvi went to the extent of saying that he was made to look like a cartoon with all that transpired late Sunday night. Apart from Shukla, the other Indian representative at the ACC meeting was Ashish Shellar, the former treasurer of the BCCI.

Throughout the eight-team tournament, bad blood was evident between the two teams, and it was expected that the events of earlier this year would repeat themselves. A terror attack in Pahalgam resulted in the loss of 26 lives, and this led to India launching Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

No handshakes were seen between the players of both teams throughout the tournament. However, the drama and controversy reached a crescendo after India's victory in the summit clash as all hell broke loose during the post-match presentation.

The proceedings concluded with the ceremony coming to a premature close, and Naqvi walked away. It must be noted that the trophy was removed from the dias midway through the ceremony as another official escorted the silverware out.

Post-match presentation ceremony gets delayed

The post-match presentation was delayed for more than 45 minutes following the conclusion of the Asia Cup final, which India won by five wickets, owing to Tilak Varma's unbeaten 69-run knock off 53 balls.

The Indian camp was ready to accept the Asia Cup trophy from Emirates Board vice chairman Khalid Al Zarooni, but it was Naqvi who was determined not to change his stance of wanting to give the silverware away.

In the end, the night concluded with Naqvi walking away from the Dubai Stadium and seemingly taking the Asia Cup trophy to his hotel room. According to protocol, the silverware should currently be at the ACC headquarters, and arrangements should be made to get the trophy delivered to the BCCI office in Mumbai.

However, they were rarely followed in the recently concluded tournament. From wanting to remove match referee Andy Pycroft to threatening to boycott the Asia Cup, the PCB and its chairman, Mohsin Naqvi, pulled out all possible stops, and it's safe to say that the board did not paint itself in a good light.

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