# India beat Pakistan in Asia Cup final and refused the trophy presentation

Event date: September 28, 2025.

India defeated Pakistan by five wickets in Dubai to win the Asia Cup for the ninth time, but the final ended without the customary podium ceremony after the Indian team declined to receive the trophy and medals from Asian Cricket Council chair Mohsin Naqvi.

The match itself finished in dramatic fashion. India reached 150-5 in 19.4 overs, with Tilak Varma unbeaten on 69 off 53 balls and Rinku Singh striking the winning boundary with two balls left. The chase began badly, as India fell to 20-3 after four overs, but Varma rebuilt the innings with support from Sanju Samson and then Shivam Dube, whose late partnership helped pull the defending champions back into the contest.

Pakistan’s innings also swung sharply. After a strong opening stand, the side slid from 113-1 to 146 all out in 19.1 overs. Sahibzada Farhan top-scored with 57 and Fakhar Zaman made 46, but Pakistan lost its last nine wickets for 33 runs. Kuldeep Yadav was the key bowler for India, taking 4-30, while Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel each took two wickets.

The final was the first India-Pakistan Asia Cup title match in the tournament’s history, and the rivalry tension was evident throughout. There were no handshakes at the toss, no handshakes after the match and, according to the AP report, India had already declined to shake hands in their earlier meetings in the competition as well. Those gestures turned the contest into more than a sporting decider.

The post-match ceremony then became the final point of conflict. Presentation was delayed for about an hour after the last ball. Pakistan’s players collected their individual medals, and India’s Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma accepted their awards, but not from Naqvi. The Indian team did not return for the trophy handover. Presenter Simon Doull later announced that the Asian Cricket Council had been told India would not collect its awards, ending the ceremony without the trophy presentation.

The AP account says BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia later confirmed that India refused the trophy from Naqvi. The team instead celebrated on the ground and posed for photographs without the trophy or medals.

On the field, India’s win also completed a strong tournament record against its rival. The sides had already met twice in the competition, in group play and the Super Four stage, and India won both matches comfortably. The final, however, was the closest of the three and the only one that needed a full comeback under pressure.

The result gave India its second T20 Asia Cup title after 2016 and extended its overall Asia Cup haul across formats to nine titles. For Pakistan, the collapse after the promising start will overshadow a match that had briefly looked within reach.