Will India ever get its Asia Cup trophies?

India won the Asia Cup on Sunday night. But instead of the usual scenes of jubilant players lifting the trophy, another controversy unfolded in Dubai.

India’s women had just crushed Sri Lanka by 72 runs to win the Asia Cup for a record eighth time. Yet when the time came for the presentation, there was no Indian team on the stage, no trophy in Harmanpreet Kaur’s hands and, most notably, no iconic photograph of India’s champions celebrating with the silverware. It was an extraordinary repeat of events from last year.

At the same Dubai International Cricket Stadium, India’s men, led by Suryakumar Yadav, had also refused to receive the Asia Cup trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chairman Mohsin Naqvi.

A year later, the same drama has now played out involving the women’s team. And the bigger question is: Will India ever get its Asia Cup trophies?

The Indian men’s team is yet to receive the trophy it won last year, with the silverware reportedly still kept at the ACC headquarters in Dubai.

This time, the trophy was not even brought out to the presentation podium.

However, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia has insisted that the trophies will eventually make their way to India.

Saikia revealed that the Indian women’s team was prepared to accept the trophy from ACC Deputy Chairman Khalid Al Zarooni. However, when Naqvi rejected that proposal, the BCCI decided to withdraw from the official presentation ceremony.

“We did not want to be part of the presentation in line with our previous stand from a year and a half ago (men’s Asia Cup). We are yet to receive our men’s Asia Cup. But we want to keep our position intact by giving respect to a lot of our people who have given their lives at the hands of some foreign mercenaries,” Saikia was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

“We did request that the deputy chairperson of ACC hand over the trophy but it was not accepted. So we decided that we have no other option but to not be a part of the presentation ceremony.”

The decision meant India celebrated another Asia Cup triumph without the traditional trophy-lifting moment.

For the players, however, the absence of silverware did little to diminish the achievement. India had produced a dominant campaign and capped it with a comprehensive victory over Sri Lanka to claim a record eighth women’s Asia Cup title.

The BCCI, meanwhile, remains confident that the unusual trophy saga will eventually be resolved.

“The BCCI congratulates the women’s team for their thumping win in the Asia Cup. The whole country is totally elated and proud of our cricketers. At some stage, we will get both trophies back,” Saikia added.