India Beat Pakistan in Asian Games Final to Sweep Both Cricket Golds

A fast start sets up the total

India defended their men's Asian Games T20 gold medal on Saturday, beating Pakistan by 19 runs in the final at Korogi Athletic Park in Nisshin. The win completed a clean sweep for India at the 2026 Games, after the Indian women's team had already claimed gold earlier against Sri Lanka, matching the double India managed at Hangzhou in 2023.

After captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to bat, Vaibhav Suryavanshi got India off to a flying start with back-to-back sixes before falling cheaply. Abhishek Sharma took over from there, smashing 61 off just 28 balls and reaching his fifty in 19 deliveries, helped by two dropped catches off Abrar Ahmed. India raced to 81 for 2 inside the powerplay. Tilak Varma anchored the back half of the innings with an unbeaten 51 off 22 balls, with support from Shivam Dube's quickfire 27 off 15, pushing India to 211 for 6 in their 20 overs. Arafat Minhas and Ahmed Daniyal took two wickets apiece for Pakistan.

Pakistan's chase falls just short

Pakistan's reply got off to a rocky start, slipping to 39 for 3 inside four overs after early strikes from Washington Sundar and Axar Patel. Hasan Nawaz tried to drag Pakistan back into the match with a fighting 96, reaching his own fifty in 28 balls and building an 89-run stand with Saim Ayub, but the required rate kept climbing.

Washington Sundar removed Abdul Samad in the 18th over to swing momentum back India's way, and Jasprit Bumrah conceded just 10 runs in the penultimate over to keep the equation difficult. Shivam Dube closed out the match in the final over, conceding 13 runs but dismissing Nawaz off the very last ball to confirm India's 19-run win.

A lopsided rivalry extends further

The result extended India's head-to-head dominance over Pakistan in T20 internationals to 15 wins against just 3 losses, adding another chapter to one of cricket's most one-sided major rivalries at this format.