Asian Games 2026 Day 3: India Retain Cricket Gold, Secure Badminton Medal as Hockey and Kabaddi Teams Continue Winning Run

India produced a packed and eventful performance on Day 3 of the Asian Games 2026 in Japan, with the country adding another gold medal, securing a badminton medal and registering convincing victories in hockey and kabaddi.

The biggest moment of the day came in women’s cricket, where India successfully defended its Asian Games title by defeating Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the gold-medal match. Elsewhere, the men’s badminton team secured at least a bronze medal after beating Japan 3-0 in the quarterfinals, while the men’s hockey team and kabaddi side continued their unbeaten starts.

There were also contrasting results in table tennis, shooting, badminton and other disciplines as India remained involved across a busy schedule. India began the day with a gold-medal opportunity in women’s cricket and delivered a dominant performance against Sri Lanka.

After winning the toss, India opted to bat and posted an imposing 216/3. Smriti Mandhana led the charge with a magnificent 79 off 45 balls, while Shafali Verma contributed 48 from 29 deliveries, and Richa Ghosh smashed 49 off just 22 balls. Mandhana’s innings provided the foundation for the huge total before Ghosh and the lower order accelerated dramatically in the closing overs.

Sri Lanka’s chase never developed. India’s bowlers restricted the opposition to just 69, giving the defending champions a 147-run victory and a second consecutive Asian Games women’s cricket gold medal.

Badminton Team Secures Another Medal

The men’s badminton team delivered one of India’s most significant results of the day, defeating hosts Japan 3-0 in the quarterfinal. Lakshya Sen produced a remarkable comeback against Kodai Naraoka. After losing the opening game 11-21, Lakshya responded emphatically and eventually completed an 11-21, 21-5, 21-19 victory.

The doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then extended India’s advantage, beating former world champions Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi 21-18, 24-22. Ayush Shetty completed the clean sweep, defeating Koki Watanabe 21-10, 21-19.

The victory sent India into the semifinals and guaranteed the team at least a bronze medal. India will face either China or South Korea in the last four. The women’s badminton team, however, could not replicate that result against Japan.

India eventually lost the quarterfinal 1-3 to the hosts. PV Sindhu began strongly against Akane Yamaguchi, taking the first game 23-21, but the Japanese player recovered to win 21-18, 21-11.

Unnati Hooda was then beaten by Tomoka Miyazaki, putting Japan 2-0 ahead.

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand gave India a lifeline by defeating Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto 21-17, 21-16. Japan, however, sealed the tie when Nozomi Okuhara defeated Tanvi Sharma.

India’s women’s team therefore exited at the quarterfinal stage.

Hockey Teams Continue Strong Starts

India’s men’s hockey team produced another emphatic performance, defeating Sri Lanka 16-1 at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium. The result gave India two wins from two matches in Pool A and maintained its strong start to the tournament. The defending champions had already opened their campaign with a commanding victory and again demonstrated their attacking strength against Sri Lanka.

With the pool stage continuing, India will now look to build on its unbeaten record as it targets another Asian Games medal.

The men’s kabaddi team also continued its title defence with another convincing victory. India defeated South Korea 63-31 in its second Group A match, following its opening-day win over Japan. The result gave the defending champions two wins from two matches and kept them firmly in contention as the group stage progresses.

Roshibina Devi Guarantees Wushu Medal

India also secured another medal opportunity through Roshibina Devi, who advanced to the semifinals of the women’s 60kg wushu event after defeating Macao, China’s Man Sin Chu.

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Her victory guaranteed India a medal in the category. Roshibina, who won silver at the previous Asian Games, will now look to progress further in the competition.

Meanwhile, Hanjabam Langlentombi Devi finished ninth in the women’s Nandao final after recording 9.436.

India experienced contrasting fortunes in table tennis. The women’s team survived a major test against Thailand, winning 3-2 in the Round of 16. Yashaswini Ghorpade won both of her singles matches, while Sreeja Akula held her nerve in the deciding fifth match to seal the victory.

India subsequently faced North Korea in the quarterfinal but lost 0-3, ending the women’s team campaign.

The men’s team also exited after suffering a 0-3 defeat to South Korea in the Round of 16. Harmeet Desai, Manush Shah and Manav Thakkar all lost their respective singles matches.

Parth Mane and Elavenil Valarivan qualified second for the 10m air rifle mixed team final with 634.6, but finished fourth in the medal contest with 376.3. In shooting, Anant Jeet Singh Naruka staged a strong recovery in men’s skeet qualification, shooting 24 and 25 to finish the second day with 96/100 and move into second place.

India also progressed in boxing, with Sakshi Chaudhary defeating Aira Villegas 5-0 in the women’s 51kg Round of 32, while Jadumani Singh secured a 5-0 win over Nepal’s Chandra Bahadur Thapa in the men’s 55kg event.

The day also saw India qualify for the men’s 4x100m medley relay final, while Jay Meena advanced to the soft tennis men’s singles quarterfinals.

Day 3 ultimately produced a mixture of landmark victories, medal assurances and exits for India. The women’s cricket team delivered gold, the men’s badminton team guaranteed a medal, Roshibina secured another medal opportunity, while the hockey and kabaddi teams strengthened their campaigns with emphatic victories.

At the same time, the exits in women’s badminton and table tennis underlined the competitiveness of the knockout stages.

With several events still to come, India’s Asian Games campaign enters its next phase with medals already secured across multiple disciplines and several teams continuing their pursuit of podium finishes.