MUMBAI, Sept. 30 -- India's ninth Asia Cup triumph in a last-over thriller over Pakistan was overshadowed by a fraught post-match ceremony on Monday that saw the champions refuse to receive the trophy from the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) chief, prompting him to walk off with the silverware and triggering the bizarre spectacle of the winners celebrating without their rightful crown. The unprecedented controversy - which also triggered a political controversy back home - brought the curtain down on a tense tournament that saw off-field hostilities in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack envelop all three India-Pakistan clashes, including a refusal to shake hands, heated words, and gestures mimicking crashed planes. "I think this is one thing which I have never seen since I started playing and following cricket that a champion team is denied a trophy. I mean that too a hard-earned one. It's not like it happened easily. It was a hard- earned tournament win," said skipper Suryakumar Yadav, reflecting on how it felt being denied the biggest prize after winning seven consecutive games at the continental showpiece. The bilateral animosity carried into the final, which India won by five wickets in a nailbiter that saw the momentum of the low-scoring match swing wildly over to over. After Rinku Singh hit the winning runs at 12.02am, scenes of jubilation at the Dubai International Stadium quickly gave way to simmering tensions as the clock ticked by with no post-match presentation ceremony. India had made it clear that they would not receive the trophy from Mohsin Naqvi, ACC chief and the sitting interior minister of Pakistan, who had caused controversy with anti-India comments earlier and had posted cryptic videos of Cristiano Ronaldo's plane crash goal celebration, alluding to Pakistani claims that Indian jets were downed during Operation Sindoor. The presentation finally got underway at around 1.20am even as Naqvi refused to budge from the podium and the Indians waited patiently around 25 yards away. There were other ACC officials who volunteered to hand over the trophy and winning medals to India, but Naqvi did not budge. Two India players - Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma - received their Player of the Match and Player of the Series titles from tournament sponsors. Once the Pakistani players were handed runners-up medals, the closing ceremony came to a premature end. As Naqvi got down from the podium and strode towards the exit gate, the ACC event staff, to everyone's surprise, followed him with the trophy. The prized silverware is believed to be at the ACC headquarters in Dubai. The 'Champions' signage was brought out briefly before it was taken away. Despite waiting for an hour-and-a-half, the India players kept their spirits up, whistled and cheered in a round of mock trophy celebrations. "My trophies are sitting in the dressing room - all the 14 guys, all the support staff. Those are the real trophies who I have been a big fan of throughout this journey of Asia Cup. Those are the real trophies, the real moments which I am taking back as lovely memories and which will stay forever," Yadav said. The Indian captain donated his match fees from the tournament to the armed forces and families of the victims in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. He rallied his players through tense off-field moments. "We got the (mock) trophy that Surya bhai gave us," said Abhishek Sharma, player of the tournament. "We could even feel its weight." Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the team. "Operation Sindoor on the games field. The outcome is the same - India wins! Congrats to our cricketers"Operation Sindoor on the games field. The outcome is the same - India wins! Congrats to our cricketers." Yadav appreciated the message. "It feels good when the country's leader himself bats on the front foot; it felt like he took the strike and scored runs. It was great to see, and when Sir is standing in front, then definitely the players will play freely," he said in response. Modi's post has garnered 27 million views and counting by Monday night. The BCCI said it intended to take Naqvi's case to the International Cricket Council (ICC) forum. "We had decided not to take the trophy from the ACC chairman who happens to be one of the main leaders of Pakistan. But that does not mean that the gentleman will take away the trophy and the medals. It was very unfortunate, very unsporting. We hope the trophy and the medals will be returned to India as soon as possible," said Devajit Saikia, BCCI secretary. "We will definitely lodge a serious complaint against this act of the ACC Chairperson in the ICC meeting in the first week of November." Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha didn't hold back while criticising his Indian counterpart, describing his actions as disrespectful to the game. "I don't want to use harsh words but they've been very disrespectful," he said in his post-match media interaction. "He (Yadav)shook hands with me in private at the start of the tournament, both at the pre-tournament press conference, and when we met in the referee's meeting. But when they're out in the world in front of the cameras, they don't shake our hands," he added. Back home, the Opposition ridiculed the government and alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party was trying to influence the cricket team for political benefits. "Prime Minister ji, first of all, it is not right to compare a cricket match to a battlefield. Secondly, if you have made the comparison anyway, then you need to learn from the Indian team that when you are close to victory, good captains do not announce a ceasefire on the orders of any third umpire," Congress leader Pawan Khera said in a post in Hindi, referring to claims that India agreed to a ceasefire with Pakistan despite having the upper hand, at the insistence of the US. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut cited a video to allege that Yadav shook hands with Naqvi before the tournament. "I don't know about the BJP's fake patriots and devotees, but the actual patriots did not watch the match yesterday. You did not take the trophy from the PCB chief Naqvi, but I shared a video which shows the Indian captain shaking hands with them, having tea and clicking pictures," he said. Naqvi, whose X account is withheld in India, said events of Sunday night "disgraced the very spirit of the game". The BCCI also announced a cash reward of Rs 21 crore for the team. "We are extremely happy and congratulate the Indian team for defeating Pakistan, hands down - in the group stage, at Super 4, as well as in the final. Our armed forces have delivered in the border area. Now, the same thing has been repeated in Dubai," Saikia said. Against the backdrop of Operation Sindoor and the Pahalgam terror attack, the Asia Cup had commenced under a cloud with sharp criticism of BCCI's decision to go ahead with sporting engagements involving Pakistan. Nineteen days later, the tournament also ended under a similar cloud, with antics off the pitch jostling for attention with on-field brilliance. Arshdeep Singh, Jitesh Sharma, and Harshit Rana mocked Pakistan spinner Abrar Ahmed's signature head-tilt celebration after dismissing Sanju Samson, while Varun Chakravarthy shared symbolic images of a lone tea cup, highlighting the missing trophy and medals that are yet to reach the victorious side. The Indian players, including Hardik Pandya, even posted pictures of themselves with trophy emojis in place of the real cup....