India retain Asian Games gold with massive win

With a crushing victory over Sri Lanka in the rematch of the 2023 final, India successfully defended their Gold medal in women's cricket at the 2026 Asian Games. A blistering batting performance that produced India's T20I best of 13 sixes in an innings of 216, which turned out to be just five short of their highest total in the format, set against the same opposition in Thiruvananthapuram in December, set up the massive 147-run win at Korogi Sports Park.

As in that fixture, the total was built on the back of Smriti Mandhana (79 off 45), Shafali Verma (48 off 29) and Richa Ghosh (49* off 22). Mandhana and Verma put on 99 in the first 10 overs, with the left-hander setting the tone early by taking down Sugandika Kumari. She scored her 37th half-century in T20Is with just 30 balls. Verma, fresh off a century in the semifinal, matched her stride for stride, hitting three sixes and as many fours before miscuing an attempted reverse sweep off Chamudi Praboda.

After that big opening partnership, Harmanpreet Kaur, who came in at No. 3, was a part of a brief lull in the action. Before a pair of boundaries, the Indian captain took some time to find her range, hitting just 10 off her first 13 balls. When she tried to clear long-off, she fell for 19. At the other end, though, Mandhana continued in her merry ways and looked set for a hundred until a slog sweep found the fielder in the deep.

Batting was still to follow. Richa Ghosh, whose prowess haven't come to the fore lately, cut loose to provide a blistering finish. She hit six fours, three sixes, and contributed to plundering 25 in the final over, helping India surpass 200 and leaving Sri Lanka in need of something extraordinary after their own record-setting semifinal.

They never came any closer. Sri Lanka was unable to build momentum beyond Chamari Athapaththu's 29 at the top, and India's spin quartet stifled any remaining life in the game. While Shree Charani took 3 for 6, Deepti Sharma Shafali Verma and Shreyanka Patil each won a brace to end the one-sided match.