Nisshin, September 22, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha on Tuesday hailed the Indian women’s cricket team for winning the gold medal at the Asian Games 2026, calling the triumph a “proud moment” and expressing confidence that India will win more gold medals at the ongoing Games in Aichi-Nagoya.
Usha also revealed that she had requested the Japanese Asian Games organising committee to include both men’s and women’s cricket in the 2026 edition, as the sport was part of the Hangzhou 2023 Asian Games.
“I’m happy that the cricketers won the gold medal and we will get more gold medals, no doubt,” Usha told IANS in an exclusive interaction.
“I requested the Japan Asian Games organising committee coordination committee to add men’s and women’s cricket in the Games. I wanted to see the cricket, and I am happy that the players have won a gold medal, a proud moment,” she added.
The IOA chief said she would meet the Indian women’s cricket team following its title-winning performance. Usha said she had watched the team play during the Games and had previously met the players on several occasions.
The Indian women’s team produced a dominant all-round performance to successfully defend its Asian Games gold medal. Smriti Mandhana smashed 79 runs to help India post a record 216/3 in the final, while Deepti Sharma, Shafali Verma, Shreyanka Patil and Sree Charani combined to take nine wickets as India defeated the same opposition by 147 runs.
The victory marked India’s first gold medal at the ongoing Asian Games and its seventh gold overall in the continental event. The Indian team had also won gold at the previous edition in Hangzhou and successfully defended its title in Aichi-Nagoya.
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