Nisshin, Sep 22 (IANS) India women’s cricket team head coach Amol Muzumdar said the team’s successful title defence at the 2026 Asian Games could trigger a run of gold medals for the country after India defeated Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final at Nagoya on Tuesday.
India, which retained the women’s cricket title from the previous edition, posted 216/3 before dismissing Sri Lanka for 69. The victory gave the country its first gold medal of the 2026 edition. It came after a campaign shaped by a demanding international schedule, unfamiliar playing conditions and a short turnaround between matches.
“It’s been fantastic. I’m really happy that you know that finally that left-hand side column (Gold) has got one medal and I’m sure post this, there’ll be a streak of Gold medals for India at the Games hereon,” Muzumdar told IANS after India’s second successive Asiad gold.
The result followed India’s recent Asia Cup triumph in Dubai, with Muzumdar underlining the physical and tactical adjustments players needed as they moved from one tournament to another.
“Every tournament has got its own significance; every tournament has got its own pressures. The demands are different. So I guess it wasn’t easy going into Dubai and winning the Asia Cup. The humidity level over there was very high, and the conditions were tough, but you know, hats off to every player; they stuck at it, and they showed very good performance in the Asia Cup in Dubai.
“But coming from Dubai straight into Japan, straight to Tokyo and then to Nagoya, it’s been a fabulous journey for everyone. There were demands of this tournament as well. We didn’t know what conditions we would get over here. There was a hybrid pitch, and they adapted to the pitch conditions and the overhead conditions really well.”
India’s batting set the tone for the final. Smriti Mandhana struck 79 from 45 deliveries, Shafali Verma made 48 off 29, and Richa Ghosh added an unbeaten 49 from 22 balls. The combined effort took India to the highest total recorded in women’s cricket at the Asian Games.
Muzumdar said the team’s preparation window between matches also helped the players settle into the conditions before the decisive stages of the competition, stating, “Yeah, we did. We played a game on 18th, and then we had a break on 19, and then we played the semifinals on the 20th. So we had a couple of days’ break, and we used it really well.”
The bowlers then completed the victory, with Deepti Sharma taking three wickets and Shafali Verma and Sree Charani claiming two each. Sri Lanka’s chase never gathered momentum as India maintained pressure throughout the innings.
Away from the field, Muzumdar said the team had also enjoyed its time in Japan, particularly the hospitality and local cuisine.
“I enjoyed Japan. I thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality and the food here. I’m a foodie, as I said before, so I enjoyed the food here too. We explored the city and the food. It’s been fantastic so far in Japan.”
For Muzumdar, the celebrations will be the culmination of a preparation process that began well before the Asian Games. He credited the players and support staff for sustaining their effort through the campaign.
“Every tournament is different. The pressures are different. So the celebrations also would be different. So, you know, we would enjoy ourselves; the girls have really worked hard. They’ve put in a lot of effort. This campaign didn’t start on the first day of this tournament. It started way back. As soon as we came back from England, we had a superb camp, so the hard work started then, and the celebrations will follow as well.”
India’s victory over Sri Lanka extended its dominance in the women’s cricket event at the Asian Games, with the team now holding gold medals from both editions in which the sport has featured.
–IANS
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