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."...