India won the gold medal in the Men's Cricket Tournament at the Asian Games 2026 by 19 runs against Pakistan in the finals at Korogi Sports Park, Nisshin, Japan, on October 3, 2026. India won the toss and chose to bat in the game and scored 211 for 6 runs in their 20 overs, making 212 the target score for Pakistan. Pakistan put up a tough fight but ended up scoring 192 for 6 wickets.
The scoreline did not reflect how close the game was in its later stages. Pakistan required 20 runs off the last over, bowled by Shivam Dube, and kept their hopes alive till the last delivery when Dube bowled a slow bouncer to get Hasn Nawaz out and won the game for India.
The standout individual performance of the match belonged to Pakistan's Hasan Nawaz, who played a blistering innings of 96 runs off just 51 balls, studded with five fours and seven sixes, before being dismissed off the final delivery of the match.
His strike rate of 188.23 kept Pakistan firmly in the chase throughout the back half of their innings, and his departure, caught behind by wicketkeeper Sanju Samson off Dube's bowling, proved to be the moment that finally settled the contest in India's favor.
Nawaz had built his innings steadily, reaching 80 off 41 balls before accelerating further in the final overs as Pakistan searched for the big hits needed to stay ahead of the asking rate. His effort was supported by useful cameos further down the order, including an innings of 9 from Abdul Samad.
who was eventually caught by Tilak Varma off the bowling of Washington Sundar as India chipped away at Pakistan's middle order. Even as wickets fell at the other end, Nawaz continued to find the boundary, turning what looked like a comfortable India win midway through the chase into a genuine contest in the final five overs.
Photo: @AFP
This was India's seventh consecutive victory against Pakistan in T20Is, adding another chapter in their dominant record against Pakistan in this shortest format of the game.
However, looking at the bigger picture of the history of both teams against each other.
It is quite interesting to note that in spite of the dominance that India had shown lately against Pakistan in the shortest format, Pakistan still holds an edge overall.
This can be seen from the fact that Pakistan has defeated India on 88 occasions, while India has defeated Pakistan in 81 encounters since their initial encounter in 1952.
Photo: @CREIMAS
India's win was more symbolic, as it helped India complete its double of winning cricket gold medals at the Asian Games after the men's team victory in Nisshin. This win showed how strong Indian cricket is when both men's and women's teams won gold medals at the Asian Games of the year.
The victory by the men's team is considered a continuation of India's winning gold medals in the T20 cricket format at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou.
