India Beat Sri Lanka to Win Asian Games 2026 Women’s T20 Gold

India opened their gold-medal account at the Asian Games 2026 with a commanding 147-run victory over Sri Lanka in the women’s cricket final at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin. Harmanpreet Kaur’s defending champions made 216/3 after choosing to bat, then bowled Sri Lanka out for 69 to secure the title.

The result delivered India’s first gold medal of the Aichi-Nagoya Games and took the country’s overall tally to seven medals: one gold, four silver and two bronze. It was an emphatic final performance from the women’s cricket side, which set its highest-ever total in women’s cricket at the Asian Games before completing a one-sided win with the ball.

India’s batters build a record-setting total

Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh drove India to an imposing score of 216/3. Mandhana top-scored with 79 from 45 balls, while Shafali made 48 from 29 in an opening partnership worth 99.

The opening pair gave India the fast start needed in a gold-medal contest. Shafali fell after her brisk 48, but Mandhana continued to attack and reached her half-century before being dismissed for 79. Harmanpreet contributed 19 as India maintained their scoring momentum through the innings.

Richa provided the finishing surge, remaining unbeaten on 49 from only 22 deliveries. Her innings contained six fours and three sixes and pushed India beyond 200, leaving Sri Lanka with a daunting chase. India hit 13 sixes across their innings in posting the competition record for the side.

The total ensured Sri Lanka faced a required target of 217 in the final. India’s batting depth and late acceleration gave the defending champions a substantial advantage before the bowlers took over.

Spinners complete a dominant final

India’s bowlers kept Sri Lanka under constant pressure and dismissed them for 69. Deepti Sharma led the wicket-taking effort with 3/6, while Shafali returned 2/3, Shreyanka Patil claimed 2/9 and Shree Charani took 2/13.

The collective bowling display meant Sri Lanka were unable to mount a response to India’s total. India completed the final with a 147-run margin, underlining the scale of their all-round performance in the decisive match.

For India, the victory also marked a second women’s cricket gold medal at the Asian Games. The team had previously won the title in 2023, and the latest success puts India alongside Pakistan as the only countries with two women’s cricket gold medals at the Games. India did not take part when cricket was included in the 2010 and 2014 editions, when Pakistan won gold.

First gold lifts India’s early Games campaign

India entered the cricket final after collecting six medals over the first two days of the Games, comprising four silvers and two bronzes. Shooting accounted for five of those medals, while Suchika Tariyal earned bronze in mixed martial arts.

The women’s cricket team’s victory changed the colour of India’s medal tally and gave the country its first top-podium finish of the event. India’s campaign now stands at one gold, four silver and two bronze medals as the Aichi-Nagoya Games move into their next phase.

The men’s cricket competition is due to begin later in the Games, with the Shreyas Iyer-led Indian side scheduled to start in the second quarterfinal on September 28. India are also the defending champions in the men’s event, while the women have already delivered a statement title defence with their final win over Sri Lanka.