India and Pakistan meet in the Asian Games men’s cricket final on Saturday, 3 October, at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan. It is the first time the two sides have met in an Asian Games final.
India are the defending champions after winning gold at Hangzhou 2023. Pakistan have never won men’s cricket gold at the Games. Their only men’s medal is a bronze from 2010.
🚨 𝐈𝐓 𝐃𝐎𝐄𝐒𝐍’𝐓 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐁𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 🚨
The greatest sports rivalry etched in the hearts of over a billion people, each beating faster for the taste of 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝 🥇
Watch Pakistan vs India in the Men’s Cricket Gold Medal Match on Saturday, 3rd October,… pic.twitter.com/dMa2jixxQp
— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) October 1, 2026
Both semi-final results look comfortable on paper. What they hide is how little batting either side has done in Japan, and why that matters on this pitch.
Rain washed out India’s quarter-final against Afghanistan, and they went through on ranking. Their first full game came in the semi-final on 1 October, where they beat Sri Lanka by 124 runs.
Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson both fell for 7 on a two-paced pitch that turned sharply. Ishan Kishan rescued India with 80 not out off 46 balls, including five sixes, as they made 169/7.
That is the highest T20I score by an Indian batting at No. 5 or lower, one run more than Manish Pandey’s 79 not out in 2018. Jasprit Bumrah then took two wickets in the first over, and Sri Lanka were bowled out for 45 in 9.5 overs.
Kishan said playing for a medal in an India shirt feels different.
“To be very honest, I was thinking about this and it does make a difference in your heart, at least, when you’re playing for India.”
Ishan Kishan, post-match press conference, 1 October 2026
“There are so many flags going around and so many people cheering for you. So you get that feeling inside, though you don’t show it.”
Ishan Kishan, post-match press conference, 1 October 2026
Pakistan’s quarter-final against Hong Kong was also washed out. Their semi-final against Bangladesh was cut to 13 overs a side because of rain.
Sufyan Moqim took 3-26 as Bangladesh made 111/7. Pakistan slipped to 53-4 before Abdul Samad (30 not out off 15) and Hasan Nawaz (27 not out) added an unbroken 59 to win by six wickets with nine balls left.
Samad took 22 runs off five balls in one over to settle the chase. Across the whole tournament, Pakistan have batted for 11.3 overs.
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The biggest problem for both teams is that rain has kept their batters out of the middle. Nets do not tell you how a pitch plays. You learn its pace, its bounce and how much it grips only by batting on it in a match, and neither side has done enough of that.
Walk into a final without match practice, face a two-paced, gripping pitch, and swinging hard stops working. The ball holds up, you are into the shot too early, and you misjudge length. That is how India lost Abhishek and Samson cheaply and how Pakistan slipped to 53-4. Expect both top orders to struggle the same way on Saturday.
What Happens If Rain Hits the Final
There is no reserve day for the final. If it is abandoned, India and Pakistan will both receive gold medals.
This is a change from Hangzhou 2023, when rain washed out the final against Afghanistan and India were given gold on their higher ranking. The same shared-medal rule applies to the bronze medal match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
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