Pakistan plans to award Mohsin Naqvi gold medal for not giving India Asia Cup trophy: Report

Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman Mohsin Naqvi is all set to be honoured in Pakistan for his act post the Asia Cup 2025, which India won after defeating the arch-rivals by five wickets in the final. As reported by Pakistan's The Nation, Naqvi, who is also the head of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the interior minister, will be awarded the Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Excellence Gold Medal to acknowledge his stance on not handing India the Asia Cup trophy after the Men In Blue refused to collect it from him.

The fresh development was announced by President of Sindh and Karachi Basketball Associations, Advocate Ghulam Abbas Jamal. As per reports, the medal will be presented to him at a grand ceremony in Karachi.

It added that organisers have made a formal request to Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who has been invited as the chief guest. The date for the same will be announced once Bilawal confirms his availability.

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The recent India-Pakistan clashes during Asia Cup revolved mostly around the political tension between the two nations as action on the field was mostly one-sided. The tournament was filled with controversies with the latest being the trophy snub by Suryakumar Yadav and Co.

As the team refused to take the trophy from Naqvi, who has been quite vocal about his anti-India stance despite being the ACC chief, the official decided to keep the silverware with himself rather than handing it to the champions.

Earlier this week he also mentioned that the Indian team is "welcome" to collect the Asia Cup trophy from him at the continental body's office head office in Dubai. He also dismissed reports of apologising to BCCI officials for his actions at the presentation ceremony.

"As ACC President, 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 wrote. "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," he added.

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Ashish Shelar and Rajeev Shukla had represented the BCCI in the ACC AGM on Tuesday where they raised a strong objection over the trophy not being duly handed over to the Suryakumar Yadav-led side which beat Pakistan in the final. The BCCI will take the matter to the ICC which will have its meeting in November.

The two teams played each other thrice in the tournament and India maintained a 'no handshake policy' with Pakistan players throughout the event, infuriating the PCB.

The hostilities between the two neighbours are at an all-time high after the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 Indian tourists were gunned down by Pakistan-backed terrorists. India had subsequently launched military action under 'Operation Sindoor' to dismantle terror infrastructure across the border.

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