Despite being a tournament of lesser importance, there has been no dearth of controversies.
The Asia Cup 2025, and for us, the Indian cricket fans, expectations are high from our boys because we want to defend the title. However, there’s another expectation, i.e., controversies, but why? Although the Asia Cup is relevant to only a few Asian teams, it has been marred by controversies since its inception, ranging from geopolitical differences between countries to on-field fights.
Given the tourney is here, let us recall some of the controversies because, hey! What’s cricket without a bit of masala?
The India-PAK rivalry off the field is known to the world, and that has affected the tournament on several occasions. In 1990-91, PAK pulled out of the tournament due to the Siachen standoff. Two years later, in 1993, the tournament itself got cancelled as both India and PAK refused to play against each other. In 2018, 2023, and 2025, a tussle also arose between the two nations regarding playing on each other’s soil.
In the 2010 edition, Gautam Gambhir and Kamran Akmal engaged in a heated exchange following a verbal altercation. The team players invaded each other’s personal space, almost getting involved in a physical fight. Fortunately, MS Dhoni, the man known for his calm demeanour, intervened. Umpire Billy Bowden and the rest of the PAK players on the field also came to resolve the tense situation.
In that game, another incident occurred between Harbhajan Singh and Shoaib Akhtar. Both players got involved in a verbal fight, but fortunately, it did not escalate.
PAK not only has geopolitical differences with India but also with Afghanistan. Therefore, the country is struggling to accept the rise of Afghan cricketers in the world of cricket. In 2022, when Asif Ali lost his wicket, he didn't like the celebration by Fareed. Therefore, the two got into a fight and reached a point where Ali tried to hit Fareed with his point. This incident was scripted as one of the worst behaviours ever displayed on the field of cricket.
The Naagin dance, or snake-like dance move, started in the Bangladesh Premier League when Nazmul Islam picked a wicket and made the move. In his T20 debut against Sri Lanka in 2018, he did the move after grabbing a wicket from behind the stumps. Sri Lanka also returned to Bangladesh with their energetic dance moves and celebrations. In 2022, Sri Lanka put an end to the controversy by defeating Bangladesh, showing the latter team its true place in the world of cricket.
Last but not least, when Bangladesh could not show its prowess on the field, it did so off the field in the domain of photo editing. In 2016, a Bangladesh fan crossed all limits by showing the head of Dhoni in the hand of Taskin Ahmed. The incident left Indian fans angry, and an unknown hacker group took revenge by hacking over 20 Bangladeshi websites. Not to forget, both sets of fans engaged in a social media battle with more edited photos.
