Thanks to the outstanding performances of Abhishek Sharma (61), Tilak Varma (51 not out), and Shivam Dube (27 runs, 2 wickets), India defeated traditional rivals Pakistan by 19 runs in the final of the Cricket event at the 2026 Asian Games on Saturday to claim the title.
Chasing a target of 212 runs, Pakistan's opening pair of captain Saad Bin Zafar and Majid Sadiq put on 33 runs for the first wicket. In the fourth over, Washington Sundar dismissed Saad Bin Zafar (10) to give India its first breakthrough. In the very next over, Akash Patel dismissed Usman Khan (3). Pakistan's third wicket fell in the seventh over as Majid Sadiq (23) was dismissed. Subsequently, the partnership between Hassan Nawaz and Saim Ayub stabilized Pakistan's innings. The two batsmen put on 87 runs for the fourth wicket, bringing Pakistan back into the contest. In the 15th over, Shivam Dube dismissed Saim Ayub (29), ending the partnership. In the 18th over, Washington Sundar dismissed Abdul Samad (9), dealing Pakistan a fifth blow. Meanwhile, Hassan Nawaz kept one end of the wicket steady while scoring quickly. Shivam Dube dismissed him caught behind to Sanju Samson on the final ball of the match. Hassan Nawaz scored 96 runs off 51 balls, hitting 3 fours and 7 sixes. Pakistan managed only 192 runs for 6 wickets in the allotted 20 overs, losing the match by 19 runs. For India, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, and Akash Patel took 2 wickets each.
Earlier in the day, aggressive half-century innings by Abhishek Sharma (61) and Tilak Varma (51 not out) helped India set a challenging target of 212 runs for Pakistan. Indian captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bat first. India suffered an early setback when Vaibhav Suryavanshi (15) was dismissed on the first ball of the third over. In the next over, Sanju Samson (2) returned to the pavilion. Captain Shreyas Iyer then took charge of the innings alongside Abhishek Sharma. The two batsmen shared a 42-run partnership for the third wicket. In the eighth over, Arif Mankhwal dismissed Abhishek Sharma stumped, breaking the partnership. Abhishek Sharma scored 61 runs off 28 balls, hitting 3 fours and 7 sixes.
In the 13th over, Ishan Kishan (20) was dismissed, followed by Shreyas Iyer (21) in the next over. Shivam Dube scored 27 runs off 15 balls, hitting 2 fours and 2 sixes. India posted a challenging score of 211 runs for 6 wickets in the allotted 20 overs. Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 51 runs off 22 balls, hitting 3 fours and 4 sixes. For Pakistan, Arif Mankhwal and Ahmed Danial took 2 wickets each. Saim Ayub and Ibrar Ahmed dismissed one batsman each.
