India and Pakistan are set for their first-ever meeting in the Asian Games cricket competition, with the rivalry taking centre stage in the gold medal match on Saturday at Karogi Sports Park in Nisshin.The defending champions, India, are appearing at the Asian Games for only the second time in the cricket event. Despite playing five matches since the Hangzhou 2023 Games, India have not faced Pakistan during that period. The same has been true in the women’s competition, with Harmanpreet Kaur’s side winning gold after beating Sri Lanka without facing Pakistan at the Asiad.That changes in the men’s final, with India aiming to retain the gold medal they won in 2023. The Indian team has brought a full-strength squad to Japan and will now face Pakistan for the biggest prize on offer.India stormed into the final with a 124-run victory over Sri Lanka, overcoming a challenging batting surface with a strong performance from Ishan Kishan and an outstanding effort from the bowlers. Pakistan, meanwhile, secured their place in the gold medal clash after chasing down 112 against Bangladesh to win their rain-shortened semi-final by six wickets with nine balls remaining.Both teams had their quarterfinal matches washed out by rain in Nisshin, meaning their semi-final victories were their first appearances at the Games.Kishan led India’s batting effort against Sri Lanka with an unbeaten 80 off 46 balls, hitting five sixes and four fours. Teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi also provided impetus at the top with 38 from 21 balls as India finished on 169/7.India’s bowlers then dismantled the Sri Lankan chase. Jasprit Bumrah struck twice in the opening over of the innings, dismissing opener Sineth Jayawardena and wicketkeeper-batter Sohan de Livera for ducks.Bumrah finished with 2-7, while Axar Patel claimed 2-8 and Abhishek Sharma returned 2-2 as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 45.
India vs Pakistan Asian Games final : When and where to watch
When: Saturday, October 3, 2026Where: Karogi Sports Park, NisshinWhere to watch: Sony Sports Network on TV. SonyLIV app and website for streamingStart Time: 10:00 AM ISTSquads:Pakistan Squad: Sahibzada Farhan(c), Maaz Sadaqat, Usman Khan(w), Saim Ayub, Hasan Nawaz, Abdul Samad, Arafat Minhas, Ahmed Daniyal, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Abrar Ahmed, Sufyan Moqim, Saad Masood, Ali Raza, Akif Javed, Haider AliIndia Squad: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Yash Thakur, Vipraj Nigam
