India’s triumph over Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 final was followed by an odd post-match dispute, but it didn’t stop the players from celebrating in their own unique style. Varun Chakravarthy, India’s mystery spinner who played a major part in the title clash, had one of the cheekiest comments to the post-match turmoil.
India won by five wickets in Dubai, but there was no conventional trophy-lifting ceremony. Mohsin Naqvi, ACC president and PCB chairman, reportedly walked away with the cup and medals when the Indian team refused to take them from him. The players had asked Emirates Cricket Board vice-chairman Khalid Al Zarooni to give the trophy instead, but the request was denied, leaving the victors without their proper emblem of triumph.
Chakravarthy found a humorous method to convey his emotions after the real trophy was supposedly discovered in Naqvi’s hotel room. On September 29, he shared a photo on X showing himself reclining in bed with a tea cup on the side table, alluding to the missing cup. He also posted an image of the Indian team pretending to raise an imagined trophy on the empty podium after the authorities had left.
” Akkha duniya ek taraf, aur mere india ek taraf ” 🇮🇳🙂
Jai hind !!! 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/FmjhkPMUaf— Varun Chakaravarthy🇮🇳 (@chakaravarthy29) September 29, 2025
Varun Chakravarthy has a history of employing a tea cup for humour.
After India won the 2025 Champions Trophy, he shared a selfie of himself enjoying coffee next to the trophy, joking about the long road to triumph. The Champions Trophy, which was originally set to be hosted purely by Pakistan, was later changed to a hybrid event with the UAE co-hosting due to India’s safety worries about visiting Pakistan.
Chakravarthy was not the only player to mock the incident as Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill, and Abhishek Sharma also shared edited images featuring trophy emojis. India skipper Suryakumar Yadav emphasised in his post that it is the champions who are remembered, not the physical trophy.
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