- Indian players kept provoking Pakistani cricketers in final: Naqvi.
- PCB chairman says Pakistan will inform ICC about incident.
- Sarfaraz also criticises India over “unethical conduct” during final.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Monday announced that they would approach the International Cricket Council (ICC) over the “provocation” by Indian players against Pakistan during the ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2025 final.
The Green Shirts crushed their arch-rivals, securing a resounding 191-run victory, in the blockbuster final at the ICC Academy on Sunday.
Speaking at the reception hosted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in honour of the Asian Under-19 champion team, PCB Chairman Naqvi said: “Indian players kept provoking Pakistani players in the U19 Asia Cup final.”
“Pakistan will inform the ICC about the incident,” he said, adding that politics and sports should be kept separate.
Cricketing relations between the two neighbouring countries have remained tense due to geopolitical tensions.
Speaking on the occasion, Pakistan U19 cricket team mentor and former national captain Sarfaraz Ahmed criticised India over “unethical conduct” during the final.
“India’s behaviour regarding the game was not good, and the Indian team’s conduct in cricket was unethical,” he said.
Sarfaraz said: “But we celebrated the victory with sportsmanship, because there should always be sportsmanship in cricket; what India did is their own action.”
In September, India’s Suryakumar Yadav snubbed customary handshakes with Pakistani captain Salman Ali Agha and players during their three Asia Cup 2025 games, including the final.
The absence of the traditional handshake at the conclusion of the matches drew global attention, with observers pointing to a lack of sportsmanship and game spirit from India.
The Indian team also refused to collect the Asia Cup 2025 trophy from Asian Cricket Council (ACC) President Mohsin Naqvi after defeating Pakistan in the final by five wickets.
The move reportedly came on the directives of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
