New Delhi/Islamabad: Pakistan stooped to an all time low by branding Indian cricket players as terrorists in the presence of Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who is also the interior minister of the country.
Though India won the Asia Cup 2025 in style in the UAE, they did not receive the trophy as the players refused to accept it from Naqvi. After waiting a while at the stadium, Naqvi walked away with the trophy and medals, instead of allowing some other dignitary to present them to the Indian team.
While Naqvi later said that the trophy and medals are at the ACC office in Dubai, reports suggest that have been moved elsewhere. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has lodged a protest with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Instead of facing criticism for his behaviour, Naqvi is being lauded in Pakistan. He is also being awarded for “running away” with the Asia Cup.
A video has now surfaced showing Naqvi being felicitated at an event. He doesn’t react even when a man next to him refers to Indian cricketers as terrorists.
“Jab ye ground mein khade thhe aur Indian team trophy nahi le rahi thi, inhone sabr ka muzahira kiya. Khade rahe, khade rahe. Wo chahte thhe ye agar hat jayenge to hum kisi aur se le lenge. Lekin unko nahi pata tha ke hamara chairman wajir-e-dakhla bhi hai. Unhone team ko baad mein dehshat gardon ki tarah handle kiya, trophy gaadi mein rakh ke saath le aaye. Ab poora India trophy ke peeche bhag raha hai ( When he was standing there on the ground and the Indian team wasn’t taking the trophy, he showed great patience. He just kept waiting. The Indian players thought they would take the trophy from someone else once he left the venue. But they didn’t know that our chairman is also the home minister. He handled the Indian team like terrorists, put the trophy in the car and took it along with him. Now, the whole of India is running after the trophy),” the person said.
Naqvi could be seen smirking as the derogatory remarks were hurled against the Indian team.
It has now come to light that Naqvi was at the root of tensions between the Indian and Pakistani sides during the Asia Cup. Even before their first encounter, he is said to have reposted images depicting fighter jets going down.
Pakistan has been claiming that it downed six Indian Air Force (IAF) during Operation Sindoor that India undertook against terror facilities against Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan could not provide any evidence to support their claims though India did produce satellite images of the damage its missiles caused to Pakistan Air Force bases across the country.
