In Pictures: Asian Games 2026 final India winning squad

India defeated defending champion China 1-0 to win an Asian Games women’s hockey gold medal after 44 years

Savita Punia: During this Asiad, the veteran goalkeeper became the most-capped Indian women’s hockey player, going past Vandana Katariya’s record. Moreover, her Penalty Stroke save in the final played a big role in keeping the Indian team in the contest

Bichu Devi Kharibam: The 25-year-old ‘keeper from Manipur has added another feather to her hat, upgrading the Hangzhou 2022 bronze to a gold, on the back of an impressive World Cup campaign

Ishika Chaudhary: Ishika has been part of the national team camp since 2017, and has been in multiple successful Indian teams like the Hangzhou 2022 bronze-winning group. This time around, the Madhya Pradesh defender was part of the Indian defence which conceded just three goals

Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam: The veteran defender was another important cog in India’s backline, and even made her presence in the opposition D, sometimes even winning India Penalty Corners

Lalthantluangi (right): Although the defender from Mizoram did not play in the final against China, she had the contribution of scoring two goals in India’s opening 19-0 demolition of Uzbekistan

Shilpi Dabas: The defender from Haryana is one of the few newcomers in the Indian squad, having made her debut just this year in the FIH Nations Cup. But she’s quickly become a reliable option in defence in Sjoerd Marijne’s team

Nikki Pradhan: The experienced midfielder provided stability in the centre of the park as India averaged nearly 10 goals per game. She also scored one of those 69 goals, through a PC

Sakshi Rana: She’s also one of the promising players in Indian women’s hockey. Even in this tournament, she finished the campaign with four goals and also assisted Lalremsiami in the final against China

Sunelita Toppo: Although just 19, the midfielder from Odisha has become one of the mainstays of the Indian national team. In Aichi-Nagoya, she featured in all of India’s matches and even sounded the board five times

Salima Tete: The India captain showed her class during the final against China, pulling the strings in the midfield, and even initiating the move which resulted in Lalremsiami’s goal. She also contributed with three goals

Neha Goyal: The midfielder has been part of the Indian setup since 2014. In this edition, she netted two goals and even completed a hat-trick of Asian Games medals (silver in 2018, bronze in 2022)

Deepika Soreng: The 21-year-old forward from Jharkand did not make an appearance in India’s 2026 Asian Games campaign in Aichi-Nagoya

Lalremsiami: Lalremsiami became the hero of the final by scoring India’s only goal against China. The strike came during her 200th senior international appearance, making the occasion even more memorable

Rutuja Dadaso Pisal: The Indian forward completed her 2026 Asian Games stint with a total of seven goals, which included hat-tricks against Thailand and Indonesia

Navneet Kaur: Navneet Kaur is one of India’s most lethal forwards and finished as India’s second-top scorer with 10 goals

Deepika: After a disappointing World Cup, Deepika regained form at the Asiad, finishing the edition as the overall top-scorer with 21 goals, 19 of which came through Penalty Corners

Ishika Sambharwal: Ishika gave India another attacking option in the front, featuring in all of the matches and ending with five goals

Baljeet Kaur: The 25-year-old contributed with a couple of goals, but her role in midfield was to break the opponent’s counter-attacks., even committing a foul or two, evidenced by the couple of Green Cards she received in the semifinal and final

Beauty Dungdung: The 23-year-old forward did not play in any of India’s women’s hockey fixtures during its campaign at the Asiad