The Indian men’s and women’s cricket teams could be required to accept their Asian Games medals from Mohsin Naqvi if the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) assigns him the presenting role. According to The Times of India, India could face disciplinary action if they refuse to take part in the official medal ceremony.
India are the reigning Asia Cup champions in both men’s and women’s cricket. However, neither team has received its respective trophies or medals following recent presentation disputes involving Naqvi, who serves as the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president and the interior minister in the Pakistani government.
BCCI Keeps Asian Games Focus on Cricket, Not Medal Ceremony
The Indian men’s and women’s cricket teams will enter the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya as strong contenders for the gold medal. However, the BCCI is not looking beyond the matches at this stage, with the potential medal presentation involving Mohsin Naqvi yet to be addressed.
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said the board will consider the situation only if either team reaches the podium. He stated that the immediate priority is to perform well in the tournament rather than discuss a ceremony that has not yet taken place.
“We are focusing solely on the matches. The teams have to first reach the podium. We will take a call then, taking into account all prevailing factors at that moment,” Saikia told The Times of India.
“We will cross the bridge only when we reach it. The focus of the board and cricketers is only on winning the matches. We don’t want to comment on anything else that hasn’t happened yet,” he added.
OCA Rule 66 Decides Who Can Present Asian Games Medals
The Olympic Council of Asia will decide who presents the medals during the Asian Games victory ceremony. Article 66 of the OCA Constitution and Rules states that the OCA president should present the medals to the winners.
The same rule allows the OCA president to delegate the responsibility to another OCA member. The designated member must be accompanied by the president or deputy of the relevant international or Asian sports federation.
Naqvi could be involved in the ceremony if the OCA delegates the responsibility to him. Rule 66 also sets out the conduct required during the ceremony. It states that no commercial, political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted during the victory ceremony.
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) is therefore expected to follow the OCA's established ceremony protocol rather than treat the event as a bilateral cricket matter. The final decision on the presenter will rest with the OCA.
India’s Asia Cup Trophy Dispute Adds Context to Asian Games Ceremony
The potential Asian Games issue comes after similar presentation disputes involving Naqvi during the recent Asia Cups. India won the 2026 Women's Asia Cup after beating Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on September 13.
Harmanpreet Kaur's side posted 183/5 after Shafali Verma scored 68 and Smriti Mandhana made 59. India then bowled Sri Lanka out for 111, with Shree Charani taking 4/20 and Deepti Sharma claiming 3/19. The victory gave India a record-extending eighth Women's Asia Cup title.
Naqvi presented the runners-up medals and prize cheque to Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu after the final. However, the Indian team did not receive the championship trophy during the ceremony.
A similar situation occurred after the men's Asia Cup final at the same venue in 2025. Suryakumar Yadav's India defeated Pakistan in the final but did not accept the winner's trophy from Naqvi.
Also read: “We discussed the matter…" - BCCI breaks silence on India refusing Asia Cup Trophy from Mohsin Naqvi
