India completed a historic double at the inaugural Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship 2026, as the men’s team registered a comprehensive 54-20 victory over Sri Lanka in the final on Day 9 of the competition. The triumph came shortly after the Indian women’s team defeated Uganda 35-15 to secure the women’s crown, making it a memorable evening for Indian kabaddi.
India’s men delivered a commanding performance, combining aggressive raiding with an outstanding defensive display to become the inaugural champions of the men’s competition.
Aditya Shinde led India’s attacking charge with an impressive Super 10, collecting 10 raid points from 14 raids, including four bonus points. Bharat Hooda contributed eight raid points, all in the second half, without being tackled in any of his seven raids.
Pankaj Mohite added six points, while vice-captain Naveen Kumar contributed five. In defence, Yogesh Dahiya produced a remarkable High 5, converting all five of his tackle attempts, all in the first half. Shubham Shinde, captain Surjeet Singh, Pravesh Malik and Deepak Sankar chipped in with two tackle points each.
India accumulated 30 raid points and 14 tackle points, inflicted four All-Outs and, significantly, did not concede a single All-Out throughout the final.
For Sri Lanka, Maduwantha was the standout defender with six tackle points, including two Super Tackles. Ansaf and Viduranga contributed three points each. However, Sri Lanka’s raiding unit struggled to break through India’s defensive wall. Sabihan, Milinda Chathuranga and Viduranga, who had been instrumental in the semi-final victory over Kenya, managed only five raid points collectively from 31 raids in the final.
India took control early, leading 15-8 with 10 minutes remaining in the first half after already inflicting an All-Out. They subsequently produced a decisive 15-2 scoring run, including another All-Out in the closing stages, to establish a commanding 30-10 advantage at half-time.
Sri Lanka managed just two successful raids from 21 attempts in the opening half, while India’s defence converted nine of its 10 tackle attempts. The Indian side maintained its dominance after the break, inflicting two more All-Outs and winning the second half 24-10.
The statistical gap reflected India’s superiority throughout the contest. India completed 24 successful raids from 40 attempts, compared with Sri Lanka’s seven successful raids from 41 attempts.
Speaking after the victory, Aditya Shinde, India’s leading scorer in the final, highlighted the support from the people of Ahmedabad and the growing popularity of the sport.
“With more and more tournaments being held, it’s great for the people of Ahmedabad too, and we received so much support from them. We hope everyone comes out to support us the same way in the competitions ahead. There will be a celebration, a really big one, and it’s already going on here!” he said.
India’s men’s title-winning campaign was nothing short of dominant, with the team recording eight victories in eight matches. They topped Group A with six consecutive wins, defeating England (46-26), Uganda (44-30), Malaysia (37-23), Nigeria (50-23), Tanzania (48-20) and Sri Lanka (45-24).
India then overwhelmed Bangladesh 56-27 in the semi-final before completing their campaign with a convincing victory over Sri Lanka in the final.
Across eight matches, India scored an impressive 380 points while conceding 193. No opponent managed to score more than 30 points against the Indian side.
With both the men’s and women’s teams lifting the inaugural Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship trophies, India underlined its growing strength and dominance in international kabaddi.
