Nisshin : India have taken the Pakistan bowlers to the cleaners in the gold-medal clash of the T20 tournament at the Asian Games in Japan. After opting to bat first, India posted a formidable 211 for six in 20 overs.
Openers Abhishek Sharma (61 off 28 balls, 7 sixes, 3 fours) and Tilak Varma (51 not out off 22 balls, 4 sixes, 3 fours) were the two biggest heroes of the innings. Shivam Dube (27 off 15 balls, 2 sixes, 2 fours) initially struggled to get going but accelerated later in his innings. Captain Shreyas Iyer (21 off 24 balls, 2 fours) and Ishan Kishan (20 off 18 balls, 3 fours) made modest contributions to India’s 211.
Earlier, India had made a blazing start against Pakistan. After being asked to bat first in this high-voltage contest, Vaibhav Suryavanshi (15 off 9 balls, 2 sixes) and Abhishek Sharma provided an explosive opening, setting the tone for an exciting Indian innings.
Pataka knock once again from VS! 💥 Short and quick — 15 off 9, including 2 sixes.🔥 #INDvPAK #AsianGames #Japan #TeamIndia #T20I #AichiNagoya2026 #Nisshin #BackTheBoysInGreen #VaibhavSooryavanshi https://t.co/1r7rO3Duql
— lightningspeed (@lightningspeedk) October 3, 2026
Off-spinner Saim Ayub conceded only four runs in the first over. However, Pakistan captain Sahibzada Farhan made the mistake of handing the second over to 21-year-old new leg-spinner Saad Masood.
Masood began with a dot ball, but Vaibhav, the IPL 2026’s premier six-hitting specialist, smashed back-to-back sixes off the second and third deliveries to dent Pakistan’s confidence. Masood completely lost his rhythm during the over. One of his deliveries landed well outside the pitch, and the umpire called it a no-ball rather than a wide. Abhishek then added 10 runs from the over with a six and a four.
India plundered 24 runs from Masood’s over, taking their score from 4 for no loss to 28 without loss.
However, Vaibhav fell off the very first ball of Saim Ayub’s following over while attempting a reverse sweep.
Saim and the other Pakistan players celebrated the wicket as if they had hit the jackpot, but Abhishek responded immediately, smashing 14 runs from the final three balls of the same over to put Pakistan under pressure again.
After Vaibhav’s dismissal in the third over, Sanju Samson was dismissed for two runs in the fourth over. Abhishek then departed in the eighth over, attempting a big shot against left-arm spinner Arafat Minhas but finding wicketkeeper Usman Khan.
At the time of Abhishek’s dismissal, India were 93 for three. Thereafter, captain Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan steadied the innings and took the attack back to Pakistan.
Read Also : Kumkum Lead India To Historic Gold In Women’s Archery