Aichi-Nagoya: Despite a lacklustre fielding effort, India secured a victory against arch-rivals Pakistan in the men’s cricket finals of the Asian Games 2026 on Saturday to claim the gold medal.
Following a power-packed batting display, the Indian bowlers were able to see through a top podium finish in Nagoya in Japan. While Pakistan claimed a silver, Sri Lanka emerged triumphant over Bangladesh to clinch the bronze medal.
India captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bat first. After two quick wickets, opener Abhishek Sharma tore into the Pakistani bowling attack, scoring a quickfire and setting the tone for a massive score on a pitch that wasn’t aiding batters.
Abhishek maintained a brisk scoring rate, laying the foundation for India with three fours and a whopping seven sixes during his stay.
While skipper Shreyas Iyer (21) and Ishan Kishan (20) added meaningful contributions with the bat, Pakistan had shifted the momentum with wickets falling at regular intervals.
It was Tilak Varma though who ensured that India finished their innings on a high note, scoring an unbeaten 51 off just 22 deliveries as India put on 211/6 off their 20 overs.
Pakistan had a daunting task in its hands. Despite the pitch condition improving in favour of the batters, the Indian bowlers continued to chip away on a regular basis, till Hasan Nawaz decided to take things into hand.
Dropped at the score of 4, Nawaz went on to score 96 off 51 balls. However, with wickets falling at the other end, Pakistan fell short of the total by 19 runs.