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| Indian players celebrate after their win over Pakistan which secured the Asian Games men's T20 gold medal at the Korogi Athletic Park in Nisshin. Reuters |
Hasan Nawaz's 96 not enough as double world champions win final by 19 runs
Double T20 world champions India were pushed hard until the final over by a determined Pakistan but remained calm under pressure to clinch the Asian Games men's T20 gold medal in Nisshin on Saturday.
India batted first in the final and posted an imposing score of 211-6 after blazing fifties by Abhishek Sharma (61 off 28 balls) and Tilak Varma (51 not out off 22).
Pakistan seemed down and out in the chase, slipping to 39-3 after six overs. However, middle order batter Hasan Nawaz waged a lone battle, smashing 96 from 51 balls to keep Pakistan in the hunt until the last over.
Nawaz hit five fours and seven sixes to keep India's bowling under pressure, before getting out to the final ball of the match by Shivam Dube as Pakistan were restricted to 192-6.
India thus completed a 19-run win to defend the gold medal they had won at the 2023 Hangzhou Games. The Indian cricket team won both the men's and women's gold medals.
India's win was set up by a belligerent start by Abhishek and a strong finish by Tilak and Dube (27 off 15). In the first three and final three overs of the innings, India scored a combined 100 runs, which proved to be the deciding factor.
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| Pakistan's Hasan Nawaz hit 96 in the final. Reuters |
Special day for Kim
South Korean golfer Tom Kim clinched the Asian Games gold, and an exemption from military service, on Saturday while combining with compatriots Mun Do-yeob and Kim Seong-hyeon for the team silver behind China.
Kim, a four-times winner on the PGA Tour, shot a final round 64 for an 18-under total of 262 to finish three strokes clear of home favourite Kazuki Higa, China's Ding Wenyi and Thai Sadom Kaewkanjana at the Kasugai Country Club.
With no prize money on offer, the Asian Games is generally overlooked by the continent's top players but there was plenty at stake for Kim.
South Korea offers military exemptions to athletes who win Asian Games gold or medals of any colour at the Olympics.
Able-bodied South Korean men usually serve at least 18 months as part of efforts to maintain a deterrent against North Korea.
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| Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting celebrates on the podium after winning the women's 60kg final. Reuters |
Meanwhile, Taiwan boxer Lin Yu-ting won an Asian Games gold in her new weight category two years after she was caught up in a gender dispute at the Paris Olympics.
Lin and Algeria's Imane Khelif both won gold in Paris amid a dispute over their eligibility. Lin was cleared to compete earlier this year after World Boxing completed a review of her eligibility status.
Her Olympic title and her first Asian Games crown, won in Hangzhou, both came at 57kg. In Japan, Lin moved up to 60kg, and at the Nishio Gymnasium she used her reach and counter-punching to beat China's Yang Chengyu 5-0 for her second Asian Games gold.
- The National
