BCCI to move ICC over Naqvi taking away trophy

The BCCI will lodge a "very strong protest" in the next ICC meeting in November against Asian Cricket Council chief Mohsin Naqvi, who walked away with the Asia Cup trophy after the Indian team refused to accept it from him in Dubai.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia justified the team's decision saying that India couldn't have accepted the trophy from a person who was "waging a war against the country."

India defeated Pakistan by five wickets in the final on Sunday with Tilak Varma hitting an unbeaten 69 to be adjudged the Player of the Match for the summit clash.

"So far as the trophy is concerned, trophy distribution, India cannot take the trophy from the person who is waging a war against our country," Saikia said.

"We have taken a decision not to accept the trophy but that does not allow the gentleman to take away the trophy and the medals to his hotel," he added.

"This is unexpected, very childish in nature and we will launch a very strong protest with the ICC in the forthcoming ICC meeting to be held in Dubai in the first week of November." Naqvi is also the head of the Pakistan Cricket Board and interior minister of his country.

On the team's decision to play the tournament despite massive criticism of engagement with Pakistan in the backdrop of Pahalgam terror attack, Saikia said the board had followed the policy set by the Indian government.

"...when it is a bilateral tournament, India is not going to play against Pakistan or any other hostile country and BCCI has been doing it for the past 12 to 15 years," he said.

"And now the government has said that in multinational tournaments, or an international tournament where a lot of other countries are also involved. In those tournaments, Indian team, whether it is cricket or football, we have to play.

"Otherwise, our other games will suffer or the federation will be banned by international federations, so we followed the policy of the central government. We participated in spite of the fact that there are some protests or some resistance from some quarters," he said.