'Matter of great pride' - Rajeev Shukla hails India's Asian Games gold win over Pakistan

India's men's cricket team won the gold medal at the Asian Games 2026 by defeating Pakistan by 19 runs in the final held at Korogi Athletic Park in Nisshin on October 3, 2026. India successfully defended their title from the previous Asian Games, matching the achievement of winning both men's and women's cricket gold medals, a feat last accomplished at Hangzhou 2023. The Indian women had defeated Sri Lanka in their gold medal match earlier in the tournament.

BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla expressed his satisfaction with India's performance in the final. Shukla acknowledged the challenges faced by the Indian players in adapting to the playing conditions at the Japanese venue, yet praised their ability to overcome these obstacles and secure victory.

"This is a matter of great pride that today we won the gold medal in cricket in the Asian Games by defeating Pakistan, and our players performed very well. If we look at the wicket conditions there, our players were not that familiar with the wicket there. Despite this, they performed very well and reached the final and by defeating Pakistan in the final, we got the gold medal in cricket in the Asian Games once again, so cricket is growing everywhere under the efforts of the BCCI. We have already won the Asia Cup, we have won in the Asian Games too, we have taken the World Cup too, so India's cricket is continuously growing," Shukla was quoted as saying by The News Mill.

India's batting performance secures gold medal

India's batting performance in the final proved decisive. Opening batter Abhishek Sharma scored 61 off 28 balls, while Tilak Varma contributed an unbeaten 51 from 22 deliveries. Shivam Dube added 27 runs off 14 balls to help India post 211 for 6 wickets. India T20 captain Shreyas Iyer called it right at the toss and elected to bat first.

Pakistan's response fell short despite a fighting innings from Hasan Nawaz, who scored 96 runs. Pakistan managed 192 for 6 in their 20 overs, leaving them 19 runs short of India's total. The bowling attack was shared among multiple Indian players, with Washington Sundar, Axar Patel and Shivam Dube each claiming two wickets.

Shukla praises India's expanding player pool

Shukla highlighted India's growing player pool as a key strength in maintaining success across multiple formats and tournaments. The BCCI Vice-President noted that India's ability to field different squads for simultaneous series demonstrated the depth of talent available to the national team.

"One special thing to see in this is that our India vs West Indies series is going on, so different players are playing for there, and different players are playing there in T20, in one-day and T20, so our players' bank has increased so much that through this we can give opportunities to all the players and there is victory everywhere, this is the most pleasant thing," he added.

The victory extended India's head-to-head record against Pakistan in T20 cricket to 15 wins and 3 losses. India's overall medal tally at the Asian Games 2026 stood at 83 medals, comprising 20 gold, 26 silver and 37 bronze medals at that stage of the Games.