India successfully defended their women’s cricket gold medal at the Asian Games 2026, producing a dominant performance against Sri Lanka in the final at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan, on September 22, 2026.
Captain Harmanpreet Kaur won the toss and India chose to bat. A magnificent 79 from Smriti Mandhana, an aggressive 48 from Shafali Verma, and Richa Ghosh’s unbeaten 49 from only 22 balls powered India to a tournament-record 216/3 from 20 overs.
Sri Lanka were then completely overwhelmed by India’s spin attack. Deepti Sharma claimed 3/6, while Shree Charani, Shafali Verma and Shreyanka Patil collected two wickets each as Sri Lanka were bowled out for only 69 in 15.4 overs. India won by an enormous 147 runs.
The result gave India their second consecutive Asian Games women’s cricket gold medal, following their title at Hangzhou. It was also India’s first gold medal of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games.
Asian Games 2026 Women’s Cricket Final – Match Summary
| Match Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | India Women vs Sri Lanka Women – Final |
| Tournament | Asian Games 2026 Women’s Cricket |
| Date | September 22, 2026 |
| Venue | Korogi Sports Park, Nisshin, Japan |
| Toss | India won and chose to bat |
| India Women | 216/3 (20 overs) |
| Sri Lanka Women | 69 all out (15.4 overs) |
| Result | India won by 147 runs |
| Smriti Mandhana | 79 off 45 balls |
| Shafali Verma | 48 off 29 balls |
| Richa Ghosh | 49 off 22 balls* |
| Deepti Sharma | 3/6 |
| Gold Medal | India |
| Silver Medal | Sri Lanka |
| Bronze Medal | Pakistan |
The final was the biggest statement of India’s tournament: 216/3 was the highest women’s score ever made at an Asian Games cricket event.
India Start the Final Aggressively
India’s batting intent was clear almost immediately.
Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma took advantage of the field restrictions and attacked Sri Lanka’s spin-heavy bowling lineup from the start.
The opening partnership reached:
99 runs
before Shafali was dismissed.
India’s openers had already established control of the final, allowing the middle order to attack without worrying about rebuilding. Cricbuzz
Smriti Mandhana Smashes 79
Mandhana produced the standout batting performance of the gold-medal match.
She reached her half-century in only 30 balls and continued attacking both pace and spin.
Her final innings was:
79 from 45 balls
5 fours | 7 sixes | Strike rate 175.56
Mandhana appeared capable of reaching three figures before a slog-sweep found a fielder in the deep.
Her seven sixes were particularly significant because they formed part of an Indian innings that included a tournament-record 13 sixes overall.
Mandhana Crosses 11,000 International Runs
The final also brought an important personal milestone for Smriti Mandhana.
Her 79 took her beyond 11,000 international runs, making her the first woman cricketer reported to reach the landmark. She also finished the Asian Games with 116 runs from two innings.
Her performances reinforced her status as one of the central figures in India’s women’s batting lineup.
Shafali Verma Adds 48 From 29 Balls
Shafali Verma continued the outstanding tournament she had produced in the semi-final.
In the final, she scored:
48 from 29 balls
with three fours and three sixes.
Her aggressive approach ensured Sri Lanka could not settle into defensive bowling plans.
Shafali’s ability to attack during the Powerplay also allowed Mandhana to build her innings without pressure from the required scoring rate.
Richa Ghosh Provides Explosive Finish
After Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur departed, Richa Ghosh delivered the finishing burst.
The wicketkeeper-batter smashed:
49 not out from 22 balls
with six fours and three sixes.
Richa narrowly missed a half-century, but her innings was arguably just as important as Mandhana’s because it pushed India well beyond the 200-run mark.
India scored 25 runs from the final over, finishing on 216/3.
India Set Asian Games Women’s Cricket Record
India’s total of:
216/3
was the highest score by a women’s team in Asian Games cricket history.
The innings included:
| Batting Stat | India |
|---|---|
| Runs | 216 |
| Wickets | 3 |
| Fours | 18 |
| Sixes | 13 |
| Run Rate | 10.80 |
The combination of an aggressive opening partnership and Richa’s late acceleration left Sri Lanka facing a target of 217 runs.
Sri Lanka’s Chase Starts With Hope
Sri Lanka needed a historic batting performance.
Captain Chamari Athapaththu was their biggest hope, and she briefly threatened to make the chase interesting.
Athapaththu scored:
29 runs
and helped Sri Lanka reach 43/3.
But once she was dismissed, the innings completely collapsed.
Deepti Sharma Destroys Sri Lanka
Deepti Sharma produced an outstanding bowling spell.
Her figures were:
4 overs – 1 maiden – 6 runs – 3 wickets
That gave her an economy rate of only 1.50 runs per over.
On a day when India had scored at almost 11 runs per over, Deepti conceding only six runs from four overs demonstrated just how effectively India controlled Sri Lanka’s batting.
Shafali Verma Shines With the Ball Too
Shafali’s contribution was not limited to her 48 with the bat.
She bowled two overs and finished with extraordinary figures of:
2 overs – 3 runs – 2 wickets
Her two-wicket spell helped turn the final into a one-sided contest.
Shafali therefore contributed with both bat and ball in India’s gold-medal victory.
Sree Charani Continues Outstanding Tournament
Left-arm spinner Sree Charani also took two wickets.
Her final figures were:
4 overs – 13 runs – 2 wickets
She finished the tournament as its leading wicket-taker with eight wickets from three matches.
Her Asian Games performances also helped her reach a remarkable milestone in the ICC Women’s T20I bowling rankings.
After the tournament, Charani reached 817 rating points, the highest ever recorded in the ICC Women’s T20I bowling rankings at that point.
Sri Lanka Collapse for 69
Once Athapaththu departed, Sri Lanka could not build partnerships.
Their final five wickets produced little resistance, and the innings ended at:
69 all out in 15.4 overs
India’s winning margin:
147 runs
Only Athapaththu and Kaushani Nuthyangana reached double figures consistently enough to make an impact.
India’s spin attack completely dominated the middle and lower order.
India’s Route to Asian Games 2026 Gold
India played three matches during their successful campaign.
| Stage | Match | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter-final | India vs Japan | India won by 8 wickets |
| Semi-final | India vs Bangladesh | India won by 114 runs |
| Final | India vs Sri Lanka | India won by 147 runs |
India therefore won all three matches comfortably, with the margin increasing at every stage.
Quarter-Final: India vs Japan
Hosts Japan faced a huge challenge against the defending champions.
Japan were bowled out for only:
57 in 19.5 overs
Sree Charani was the standout bowler with 4/10.
India then raced to:
59/2 in only five overs
Shafali Verma finished unbeaten on 40 from only 15 deliveries, giving India an emphatic eight-wicket victory.
Semi-Final: India vs Bangladesh
The semi-final belonged to Shafali Verma.
India posted:
195/4 from 20 overs
Shafali produced an extraordinary unbeaten:
100 from 49 balls*
with three fours and nine sixes.
Smriti Mandhana added 37 from 19 balls, while captain Harmanpreet Kaur made 40.
Bangladesh were then dismissed for only:
81 in 15.4 overs
giving India a 114-run victory and a place in the final.
Shafali Verma’s Asian Games Century
Shafali’s semi-final century was one of the biggest individual performances of the tournament.
She reached exactly 100 not out from 49 deliveries and finished the competition as the leading run-scorer.
Asian Games 2026 Women’s Cricket Leading Run-Scorers
| Player | Matches | Runs | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shafali Verma – India | 3 | 188 | 188.00 |
| Chamari Athapaththu – Sri Lanka | 3 | 175 | 87.50 |
| Smriti Mandhana – India | 3 | 116 | 58.00 |
| Shawaal Zulfiqar – Pakistan | 3 | 96 | 32.00 |
| Fatima Sana – Pakistan | 3 | 86 | 43.00 |
Shafali therefore finished the Asian Games as both India’s and the tournament’s highest run-scorer.
Asian Games 2026 Leading Wicket-Takers
India also dominated the bowling table.
| Player | Team | Wickets |
|---|---|---|
| Sree Charani | India | 8 |
| Deepti Sharma | India | 7 |
| Shafali Verma | India | 4 |
| Shreyanka Patil | India | 4 |
| Fatima Sana | Pakistan | 4 |
This shows how complete India’s campaign was.
They finished with the tournament’s leading run-scorer and its two leading wicket-takers.
Pakistan Win Bronze Medal
Pakistan defeated Bangladesh in the bronze-medal match.
Pakistan scored:
145/8
Captain Fatima Sana played the key innings with 45 from 30 balls, while Gull Feroza added 31.
Bangladesh were restricted to:
114/7
giving Pakistan a 31-run victory.
Umm-e-Hani produced outstanding figures of 3/10 from four overs.
It was Pakistan women’s first Asian Games cricket medal in 12 years and their third overall after winning gold in 2010 and 2014.
Asian Games 2026 Women’s Cricket Medal Table
| Medal | Team |
|---|---|
| 🥇 Gold | India |
| 🥈 Silver | Sri Lanka |
| 🥉 Bronze | Pakistan |
| 4th | Bangladesh |
India Win Back-to-Back Asian Games Gold Medals
Women’s cricket was previously part of the Asian Games at Guangzhou 2010, Incheon 2014 and Hangzhou.
India won their first women’s cricket Asian Games title at Hangzhou, defeating Sri Lanka in the final.
The same two teams met again in Japan in 2026.
This time, the result was even more emphatic.
India’s 147-run victory confirmed:
Back-to-back Asian Games women’s cricket gold medals
for Harmanpreet Kaur’s team.
India Complete a Historic Cricket Double
India Women won gold on September 22.
Eleven days later, India’s men defeated Pakistan by 19 runs in their gold-medal final.
That meant India finished the Asian Games with:
| Cricket Event | Gold Medal |
|---|---|
| Women’s Cricket | 🇮🇳 India |
| Men’s Cricket | 🇮🇳 India |
Reuters described the achievement as an Asian Games cricket double for India.
Major Records From India Women at Asian Games 2026
| Record | Achievement |
|---|---|
| Highest Asian Games women’s team total | India – 216/3 |
| Most sixes in final innings | India – 13 |
| Biggest final winning margin | 147 runs |
| Leading tournament run-scorer | Shafali Verma – 188 |
| Leading wicket-taker | Sree Charani – 8 |
| Shafali semi-final score | 100 off 49* |
| India women’s titles | Back-to-back gold medals |
| Sree Charani ranking | Record 817 T20I bowling rating points |
Why India Were So Dominant
India’s greatest strength was not one individual performance.
Their top order provided aggressive starts, with Mandhana and Shafali consistently putting opposition bowling attacks under pressure.
Richa Ghosh gave the team finishing power, while India’s spin attack made run-scoring extremely difficult.
Sree Charani and Deepti Sharma combined for 15 wickets during the tournament, while Shafali contributed four wickets alongside her tournament-leading 188 runs.
That balance made India extremely difficult to challenge.
Asian Games 2026 Women’s Cricket FAQs
Who won women’s cricket at Asian Games 2026?
India won the gold medal, defeating Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final.
What was the India vs Sri Lanka final score?
India scored 216/3 from 20 overs. Sri Lanka were dismissed for 69 in 15.4 overs.
Who scored the most runs in the final?
Smriti Mandhana scored 79 from 45 balls, with five fours and seven sixes.
How many runs did Shafali Verma score in the final?
Shafali scored 48 from 29 balls. She also took two wickets for only three runs.
How many runs did Richa Ghosh score?
Richa Ghosh finished unbeaten on 49 from 22 balls, hitting six fours and three sixes.
Who was India’s best bowler in the final?
Deepti Sharma took 3/6 from four overs, including a maiden.
Who scored a century for India at Asian Games 2026?
Shafali Verma scored an unbeaten 100 from 49 balls against Bangladesh in the semi-final.
Who scored the most runs in the women’s tournament?
Shafali Verma finished first with 188 runs from three matches.
Who took the most wickets?
India’s Sree Charani took eight wickets, finishing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker.
Who won silver?
Sri Lanka won the women’s cricket silver medal.
Who won bronze?
Pakistan defeated Bangladesh by 31 runs to take bronze.
Did India win women’s cricket gold at the previous Asian Games?
Yes. India also won the previous women’s Asian Games cricket title and successfully defended it in Japan in 2026.
Final Words
The Asian Games 2026 women’s cricket tournament ended with a remarkable demonstration of India’s strength.
India began by bowling hosts Japan out for 57 and winning their quarter-final by eight wickets. They then demolished Bangladesh by 114 runs in the semi-final, where Shafali Verma produced an unbeaten century.
The final was even more emphatic.
Smriti Mandhana’s 79, Shafali Verma’s 48 and Richa Ghosh’s unbeaten 49 carried India to a record 216/3. Deepti Sharma then led a devastating bowling effort as Sri Lanka collapsed to 69.
The 147-run victory gave Harmanpreet Kaur’s side its second successive Asian Games gold and delivered India’s first gold medal of Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
With Shafali finishing as the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Sree Charani leading the wicket charts, Mandhana starring in the final and India remaining unbeaten throughout, the 2026 campaign was not merely another title—it was one of the most dominant women’s cricket performances in Asian Games history.
