Reporting snapshot · 22 September 2026. Pakistan's women's cricket team beat Bangladesh by 31 runs in the third-place playoff at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Japan, on Tuesday, 22 September, to win the bronze medal at the 2026 Asian Games. The result gives Pakistan its third Asian Games women's cricket medal after golds in 2010 and 2014, and its first since 2014. The scorecard and match account rest on reports by Geo News, The Express Tribune and The News International; the official Games results service was the underlying primary record.
What happened
Pakistan’s women’s cricket team secured the bronze medal at the 2026 Asian Games on Tuesday, defeating Bangladesh by 31 runs in the third-place playoff at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, near Nagoya. The win is Pakistan’s first women’s cricket podium at a continental Games since 2014, and its second medal of any kind at Aichi-Nagoya 2026 after MMA fighter Asim Khan’s bronze on Monday.
Batting first after being sent in, Pakistan were restricted to 145 for eight in their 20 overs, with captain Fatima Sana top-scoring with an unbeaten 45 off 30 balls, hitting three fours and three sixes. Opener Gull Feroza contributed 31 off 23 deliveries, Aliya Riaz made 25, and Shawaal Zulfiqar added 17 as the side recovered from a mid-innings collapse. In reply, Bangladesh finished on 114 for seven, with Sharmin Akhter unbeaten on 46 and captain Nigar Sultana scoring 25. Off-spinner Umm-e-Hani was Pakistan’s most successful bowler, taking three wickets for ten runs in her four overs.
How the innings unfolded
Pakistan’s innings was built around a captain-led fightback after the top order stuttered. The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan slipped to 67 for five before Sana and Aliya Riaz put together a 67-run partnership for the sixth wicket to revive the innings. Sana’s 45 came from 30 balls and included three boundaries and three sixes, while Riaz added 25 from 22 deliveries, including two sixes.
Geo News and The News International gave a fuller scoring breakdown: Gull Feroza struck six fours in her 31, Shawaal Zulfiqar made 17 without a boundary, Saira Jabeen scored five, Ayesha Zafar nine, Eyman Fatima fell for a duck, and Tuba Hassan added four. For Bangladesh, Ritu Moni, Shorna Akter and Nahida Akter each took two wickets, with Sanjida Akter Meghla claiming one.
In the chase, Bangladesh never built enough momentum. Umm-e-Hani removed early wickets, including Shorna Akter for six in her spell, and claimed figures of three for ten from four overs, her best return in international cricket. Tasmia Rubab, Fatima Sana, Nashra Sandhu and Ayesha Zafar each took one wicket. Sharmin Akhter’s unbeaten 46 off 45 balls and Nigar Sultana’s 25 were the main contributions, but the target of 146 proved beyond a side that lost wickets regularly and finished on 114 for seven.
Why the bronze matters
The medal carries more than a podium finish. Pakistan’s women’s cricket team had won gold at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou and defended it in 2014 in Incheon, but finished fourth at the most recent edition in 2022, losing the bronze-medal match to Bangladesh. Tuesday’s result therefore gives Pakistan its third Asian Games women’s cricket medal and its first since 2014.
The bronze also rounds out a mixed run for the side this month. Pakistan reached the semi-finals of the Women’s Asia Cup in early September before losing to Sri Lanka, and were eliminated from the gold-medal contest at the Asian Games on Sunday when Sri Lanka beat them by eight wickets in the semi-final. Bangladesh, meanwhile, reached the bronze match after a heavy defeat to India in the other semi-final.
For the wider Pakistani contingent at the Games, the result is the country’s second medal of the competition and a return to the podium for a team that arrived in Japan with one of Pakistan’s stronger medal hopes. The women’s cricket campaign began with a three-wicket quarter-final win over Thailand on 17 September and ends with a bronze secured against Bangladesh.
What is still uncertain
The match account and scorecard in this article rest on reports published on Tuesday by Geo News, The Express Tribune and The News International. The official Aichi-Nagoya 2026 results service was the underlying primary record but could not be independently accessed during this reporting pass; the three independent Pakistani reports agreed on the result and the headline score details.
Medal ceremonies for the women’s cricket competition and the final position of Pakistan in the overall medal table were not detailed in the reports reviewed. The gold-medal match between India and Sri Lanka was scheduled later on Tuesday at the same venue, with Bangladesh and Pakistan having contested the bronze. Any subsequent appeals or revisions to the results were not reported at the time of writing.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 22 September 2026. The official Games results service was the underlying primary record but could not be independently accessed during this reporting pass; the result rests on three independent Pakistani news reports that agreed on the scoreline.
- Geo News — Pakistan women's cricket team claim bronze medal at Asian Games 202622 September 2026 · The result, the full scorecard, Umm-e-Hani's 3/10, Fatima Sana's unbeaten 45, and the batting and bowling breakdown for both sides.
- The Express Tribune — Pakistan women win Asian Games bronze22 September 2026 · The result, the 67-run sixth-wicket recovery, the bowling figures, and the semi-final context.
- The News International — Pakistan beat Bangladesh to secure bronze at Asian Games 202622 September 2026 · Independent confirmation of the result, scorecard, and player contributions.
- The Express Tribune — Pakistan women depart for Asian Games14 September 2026 · Squad details, the quarter-final start date, and Pakistan's 2010 and 2014 golds and fourth-place finish in 2022.
.jpg){kind=link}