In the men’s cricket competition at the 2026 Asian Games, which will take place in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka have guaranteed a direct spot in the knockout stage. Four additional teams will join the four seeded teams in the quarterfinals; the draw will be revealed on Thursday, July 23.
In the qualifying phase, Afghanistan leads the six teams divided into two groups. The 2023 edition’s silver medalists are placed in Group A with hosts Japan and Nepal, while Group B is made up of Malaysia, Oman, and Hong Kong, China. The top two teams from each group advance to the quarterfinals after each team plays the other once in their respective groups.
India will play Japan and Pakistan will play Thailand in the women’s draw, which will start straight from the quarterfinals. In the women’s competition, Bangladesh will compete against the People’s Republic of China, while Sri Lanka will play Malaysia.
In the previous Asian Games, which took place in Hangzhou, China, in 2023, India won gold in both the men’s and women’s cricket competitions. The men’s cricket competition in the 2026 Asian Games will take place from September 24 to October 1, while the women’s competition will run from September 17 to September 22.
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