NAGOYA: India and Pakistan have secured direct qualification to the knockout stage of the men’s cricket competition at the 2026 Asian Games after the tournament draw was announced. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka also received automatic quarter-final berths based on their ICC T20 International rankings.
The 10-team men’s tournament will begin on September 24 in Nagoya, Japan. The remaining six teams—Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, and Oman—will compete in a preliminary round to determine the four additional quarter-finalists. Group A features Afghanistan, Japan, and Nepal, while Group B includes Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Oman.
The women’s cricket competition will run from September 17 to 22 and starts directly at the quarter-final stage. India will face hosts Japan, Pakistan will take on Thailand, Bangladesh will meet China, and Sri Lanka will play Malaysia. All matches in both tournaments will be played in the Twenty20 format.
India enter the Games as the defending champions in both the men’s and women’s cricket events after winning gold medals at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou in 2023.
