Aichi-Nagoya: India overcame a half-time deficit to defeat Iran 40-34 and successfully defend their men’s kabaddi title at the Asian Games 2026 on Saturday, completing a golden double after the women’s team also defeated Iran in the final earlier in the day.
India went into the interval trailing 17-18 but returned with a completely different intensity after the break. The defending champions tightened their defence and increased the pressure in attack to gradually open up a decisive lead.
Sumit and Arjun Deshwal were central to India’s surge in the second half as the team maintained its momentum and kept Iran from mounting a sustained response. India eventually established a six-point cushion to close out the final 40-34.
The victory also marked a more comfortable finish than the 2023 Asian Games final, when India edged Iran in a tightly contested encounter. This time, India seized control after the interval and managed the closing stages without allowing their opponents back into contention.
The men’s triumph added another Asian Games gold to India’s long-standing record in kabaddi and capped a successful campaign for the defending champions.
Earlier, India’s women retained their Asian Games title by beating Iran 37-34 in a closely fought final. India held their advantage through a tense closing phase, with their defence producing a crucial tackle on Aynaz with around a minute remaining to effectively end Iran’s hopes of a late comeback.
The two victories gave India gold medals in both the men’s and women’s kabaddi competitions at the Aichi-Nagoya Games.
