Day 3 at Aichi Nagoya 2026 brought India its first gold medal of this edition of the Asian Games, with the Women’s Cricket team retaining its Asian Games title. China remained firmly atop the overall standings, while India also secured medals in Badminton and Wushu.
After collecting six medals without a gold in the opening two days, India finally reached the top step of the podium on Day 3 at Aichi Nagoya 2026. The Indian Women’s Cricket team defeated Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the T20 final to win gold and retain the title won at Hangzhou 2022. India finished the day with seven medals — one gold, four silver and two bronze.
At the top of the overall competition, China continued to build a substantial lead, finishing the day with 32 gold, 13 silver and 8 bronze medals — 53 in total. Hosts Japan were second with 11 golds and 46 medals overall, while the Republic of Korea stood third with six golds and 27 medals.
China continues its medal surge
China added another strong gold-medal haul in swimming, Shooting, Cycling, and Volleyball. One of the day’s major performances came from Sheng Lihao, who won his third gold of the Games. Alongside Wang Zifei, Sheng won the mixed-team 10m Air Rifle title with a world-record 507.1 points. China had already won the Men’s Individual and Team 10m Air Rifle titles earlier in the Games.
China also won the Women’s Volleyball title, defeating hosts Japan 3-0. The victory marked China’s 10th Asian Games gold in Women’s Volleyball. China’s Guo Li won the Women’s Road Race Cycling gold after covering the 90.4km course in 2:50:05, edging Afghanistan’s Fariba Hashimi in the sprint finish.
In Swimming, Japan’s Yumeki Kojima, aged 17, won the men’s 400m Individual Medley in a Games-record 4:07.02. China’s Peng Xuwei set an Asian record of 2:05.77 while winning the Women’s 200m Backstroke. Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey successfully defended her Women’s 100m Freestyle title in 52.45 seconds.
Japan also ended China’s run of 13 consecutive Asian Games Women’s Gymnastics all-around titles, with Aiko Sugihara winning gold with 55.599 points.
India on Day 3 at Aichi Nagoya 2026: Gold at Last
India’s September 22 campaign revolved around four major developments: Women’s Cricket gold, a Badminton medal secured, a Wushu medal assured and a dominant hockey victory.
Women’s Cricket delivers India’s first gold
The biggest Indian result came at the Korogi Athletic Park, where Harmanpreet Kaur’s side defeated Sri Lanka by 147 runs. India scored 216/3 in 20 overs, driven by Smriti Mandhana’s 79, Shafali Verma’s 48 and Richa Ghosh’s 49 off 22 balls*. Mandhana’s innings also took her past 11,000 international runs, making her the first woman to reach that milestone.
Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 69 in 15.4 overs. India therefore won by 147 runs and successfully defended the Women’s T20 Asian Games title.
Men’s Badminton guarantees another medal
India’s Men’s Badminton team produced one of the day’s strongest results outside cricket. India defeated hosts Japan 3-0 in the quarter-final to guarantee a medal in the Men’s Team event.
Lakshya Sen clinched the opening win, coming from behind against world No. 7 Kodai Naraoka to win 11-21, 21-5, 21-19. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then defeated Hoki Takuro and Kobayashi Yugo 21-18, 24-22 before Ayush Shetty completed the 3-0 victory against Koki Watanabe.
India will face the winner of China versus Korea in the semifinal. The result guarantees India another Men’s team Badminton medal after the silver won at the previous Asian Games.
However, India’s Women’s Badminton team lost 1-3 to Japan in the quarter-finals and exited the team competition.
Roshibina Devi assures a Wushu medal
India also secured another medal opportunity through Roshibina Devi. The two-time Asian Games medallist defeated Macao China’s Chu Man Sin in the Women’s 60kg Sanda quarterfinal. Roshibina, who won silver at Hangzhou and bronze at Jakarta-Palembang, has now assured herself of a third consecutive Asian Games medal.
Men’s Hockey produces another big score
India’s Men’s Hockey team continued its impressive start by defeating Sri Lanka 16-1 in Pool A. Jugraj Singh scored four goals, while Abhishek and Dilpreet Singh completed hat-tricks. Captain Harmanpreet Singh added two goals. Sri Lanka’s only goal was scored by Suresh Rathnayake — the first goal India had conceded to Sri Lanka in Asian Games history.
