Siliguri

Indian women’s cricket team wicketkeeper-batter Richa Ghosh’s father, Manabendra Ghosh, on Monday backed the team’s decision not to accept the Women’s T20 Asia Cup trophy from ACC President and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi, saying the championship victory was more important than the trophy presentation.

The Harmanpreet Kaur-led India were not present on the stage during the post-match presentation ceremony after winning the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 final, as the team refused to receive the trophy from ACC President and PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi amid tensions over cross-border terrorism and the backdrop of Operation Sindoor, India’s military response against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.

During the ceremony, Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu received the runners-up cheque from Naqvi, but Indian players were absent from the stage. There were no visuals of Team India lifting the trophy or celebrating with it, as the broadcast shifted back to the studio after Sri Lanka’s presentation.

However, before the presentation ceremony started, Team India was in a huddle of their own, with their head coach Amol Muzumdar addressing the team and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Devajit Saikia and vice-president Rajiv Shukla giving the 'Fielder of the Match' medal to pacer Nandani Sharma, who took two catches in the match. Saikia spoke to the players and congratulated the team on their win.

Speaking to ANI, Manabendra Ghosh said the Pahalgam terror attack was an incident that could not be forgotten and supported the decision taken by the team and the BCCI.

"Pahalgam is an incident which we can never forget... Taking a trophy from someone who no longer has the right to give trophies, that decision was perfectly all right for us..." he said.

He added, "BCCI is part of us. We all support that decision. The trophy is not the important thing. The important part is that we won the championship. We already got our trophy when we won the championship..."

India defeated Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2026 final in Dubai to clinch their eighth continental title. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side remained unbeaten throughout the tournament.

Reacting to India’s dominant win in the final, Ghosh praised the entire team for their performance and said every player contributed to the title triumph.

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"It's wonderful beating Sri Lanka by a huge margin. We are very proud of all the girls. They all played a very big role. Richa is trying to do her best. That is something which we appreciate, and we feel proud of. All the girls have done well. At the end of the day, the trophy is ours, which is the most that matters... I am sure that in the near future, many more trophies will be coming..." he said.

India produced a strong all-round display in the final, posting 183/5 after a record opening stand between Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma before restricting Sri Lanka to 111. Deepti Sharma starred with the ball, taking three wickets, while Shree Charani claimed four wickets as India secured their eighth Asia Cup crown.