India captain Suryakumar Yadav slammed the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) after his team was denied of the Asia Cup trophy following their victory over Pakistan in the final. This came after the Indian team refused to take the trophy from ACC Chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the chief of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
Though India's previous two clashes against Pakistan in the tournament were also marred with drama, the most controversial moment occurred in the post-match presentation after the final. Though Naqvi was supposed to be handing Suryakumar & Co. with the trophy according to the protocol, the Indian camp refused to take the title from him. This led to the post-match ceremony getting delayed for close to 45 minutes. Eventually the presentation did go ahead, but India did not receive the trophy. They did however ended up having a trophyless celebration on the podium.
Soon after, Suryakumar attended the post-match press-conference alongside Abhishek Sharma and criticised the ACC for not handing the Indian team with the Asia Cup trophy after a gruelling campaign. He remarked that he has never seen such a thing happen in his career.
Suryakumar's fiery remarks in press-conference
"This is one thing which I have never seen. Since I started playing cricket, I have been following cricket. That a champion team is denied a trophy. That too, a hard earned one. It's not like it happened easily. But it was a hard-earned victory. We have been here since the 4th, and played a game today. Two back-to-back good games in two days. I feel we deserved it. And I can't say anything more. I think I have summed it up really well," Suryakumar told reporters.
"If you tell me about the trophies. My trophies are sitting in my dressing room. All 14 guys are with me. All the support staff. Those are the real trophies. I have been a big fan of these boys throughout this journey of the Asia Cup. Since we came here, we have played this tournament. We started our preparations. I think those are the real trophies. Real moments which I am taking back as lovely memories which will stay with me forever going forward. And that's all," he added.
India win 9th Asia Cup title
Meanwhile, India won a record-extending ninth Asia Cup title after defeating Pakistan in the final on Sunday. It was a terrific victory for the Men in Blue, who chased down the 147-run target with just two deliveries left to spare. Tilak Varma was the star of the show as he steered the side to the target with his unbeaten knock of 69. Shivam Dube also played a vital role in India's victory, slamming 33 runs from 22 deliveries and forming a key partnership of 60 runs with Tilak.