The Indian women's cricket team reasserted its continental dominance by defeating Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final at Karogi Athletic Park in Nisshin, Aichi, on Tuesday.
The victory margin in the game was the highest ever in all of women’s T20Is. The Harmanpreet Kaur-led side's win came after a batting performance that left Sri Lanka chasing a record target of 217.
After winning the toss, India opted to bat first.
Smriti Mandhana was regal as ever in her 79 off 45, before Shefali contributed 48 off 29. Ghosh then took over to give 49 off 22 deliveries, taking India beyond the 200-run mark, which gave the team a solid platform to clinch the gold.
Sri Lanka’s skipper Chamari Athapaththu scored 29 off 21, but they kept losing wickets. Sri Lanka capitulated to 69 all out in 15.4 overs as Indian spinners ran through their batters.
Shafali Verma (48 and 2/3) produced an all-round performance while Deepti Sharma (3/6) and Shree Charani (2) chipped in with wickets as usual in a final devoid of a contest.
India now has two women’s cricket golds at the Asian Games. They previously won gold in 2023.
The Indian men’s cricket team will now be expected to defend the gold at the Games on September 28.
Sri Lanka settled for the silver medal while Pakistan bagged the bronze after beating Bangladesh in the third-place play-off. Pakistan won the bronze with a comfortable 31-run win over Bangladesh earlier in the day.
Cricket was first featured at the sporting event in 2010. However, India only began participating in the 2023 games held in Hangzhou, China.
The first two days of the sporting event gave India four silvers and two bronzes, five of them accounted for in shooting.
With inputs from PTI
