No trophy drama: Indian cricket team receives Asian Games gold medals from Jay Shah

India finally got its hands on a piece of Asian silverware after a year of waiting, but the identity of the person handing it over made the moment particularly notable.Shreyas Iyer's India beat Pakistan by 19 runs in the men's cricket final at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya on Saturday, retaining the gold medal they won at the 2022 Hangzhou Games. And unlike the two Asia Cup triumphs that preceded it, this time the Indian team actually received its medals at the presentation ceremony.There had been plenty of attention on who would be on the podium to hand over the medals after India's victory. ICC chairman and former BCCI secretary Jay Shah presented the gold medals to the Indian team, while an Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Organising Committee official presented the silver medals to Pakistan. Sri Lanka received the bronze. ICC Chair Jay Shah hands over the gold medals to Indian cricket team (SonyLIV Screengrab) Pakistan players receive their silver medals at Asian Games (SonyLIV Screengrab) The contrast was hard to miss. India's men's team won the Asia Cup in 2025 but did not receive the winners' trophy at the presentation ceremony in Dubai. The controversy centred on Asian Cricket Council president Mohsin Naqvi, who is also chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board and Pakistan's interior minister. India had decided not to accept the trophy from Naqvi, and the presentation ended without the champions receiving the silverware.India vs Pakistan Asian Games Final: Highlights | Scorecard The same controversy resurfaced at the women's Asia Cup final in September this year. Harmanpreet Kaur's India beat Sri Lanka by 72 runs to win a record-extending eighth title, but the team again did not participate in the trophy presentation involving Naqvi. BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said the board had communicated its position to the ACC before the final and described it as a conscious institutional decision in view of the circumstances and sentiments prevailing in India.Against that backdrop, Saturday's Asian Games ceremony in Japan offered a very different picture. Three different officials handed over the medals to the three medal-winning teams, with Shah presenting the gold medals to India. Naqvi was not present in Aichi-Nagoya on the day of the men's cricket final.Both the Indian men's and women's teams received their gold medals at these Asian Games, with the men's side adding another cricket title to India's tally after retaining the gold won in Hangzhou. Reuters Photo The match itself was played without any major flashpoint, despite the political backdrop and the intensity of the rivalry. There were no handshakes at the toss and none after the final. India did not approach the Pakistan players after emerging from the dressing room, while the Pakistan team shook hands with the umpires before returning without interacting with the Indian players.On the field, however, the contest remained focused on cricket. India posted 211/6, powered by Abhishek Sharma's 61 off 28 balls and Tilak Varma's unbeaten 51 off 22. Pakistan's chase was led by Hasan Nawaz's 96, but India held them to 192/6 to seal a 19-run victory.The only awkward moment during the ceremony came during the group photograph. Pakistan, positioned to India's left, and bronze medallists Sri Lanka initially stepped down from the podium before eventually assembling in front of the Indian contingent for the photograph. Usually, the gold, silver and bronze medallists share the podium for the group photograph, but that was not the case after the men's cricket final.Jay Shah left after the photo session.For India, though, the bigger picture was simple: after winning two Asia Cups without being handed the trophy, the Asian Games gold finally came with silverware in hand.- Ends