Cricket at the Asian Games! It’s relatively new. The sport was introduced for the first time in 2010. It stayed in 2014 too, but in 2018 it was excluded. It returned in the next edition, which happened in 2023, a year later than the allotted one, due to the COVID-19. It was also the edition where the Indian teams across men’s and women’s participated for the first time, and needless to say, they swept both gold. Now the 2026 edition is upon us. Although the opening ceremony in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, kicks off on September 19, as far as cricket matches are concerned, they have been set in motion today itself, and tomorrow the Indian women’s team under Harmanpreet Kaur will take on Japan in the quarterfinals. The format is very simple. Four quarterfinals, semis on September 20 and the final and the third place play-off on September 22.
However, the men’s team will be in action in late September. The format is a bit different there. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have direct entry into the quarters, and they are waiting for their last-8 opponents from the group stage, which kicks off on September 24. Anyway, the Indian men’s team starts its campaign on September 28, still in the dark as regards whom they will play in their first game. The semifinals and the final and the third-place playoff will be played on October 1 and October 3, respectively.
Deep Dive
What format will the cricket matches follow in the 2026 Asian Games?
Why is the Indian women's cricket team a favorite to win gold at the Asian Games?
How is Shreyas Iyer preparing for his role as captain in the 2026 Asian Games?
India should not have any problems winning both the gold medals. Of course, it’s cricket; anything can happen. It’s also a format in which a lesser team has the maximum chance to upstage a higher-ranked team. We don’t have to go that far to prove our point. Just in June, minnows Ireland beat world champions India in both T20Is in Belfast, which shocked the cricketing world to all intents and purposes.
{{/usCountry}}India should not have any problems winning both the gold medals. Of course, it’s cricket; anything can happen. It’s also a format in which a lesser team has the maximum chance to upstage a higher-ranked team. We don’t have to go that far to prove our point. Just in June, minnows Ireland beat world champions India in both T20Is in Belfast, which shocked the cricketing world to all intents and purposes.
{{/usCountry}}But really, India should win both the golds even though it’s a game of uncertainties. The women’s team recently won the Asia Cup in Dubai, and the bunch under Harmanpreet Kaur ran through their opponents in all five of their matches against Thailand, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. They were just too good. Shafali Verma and Deepti Sharma shone like bright stars with maximum runs (236 runs at an average of 47.20) and maximum wickets (14 wickets) respectively in the tournament. Shree Charani and Smriti Mandhana also had a good tournament. In all likelihood, India are going to face some of their Asia Cup opponents in the Asiad semis and beyond. Irrespective of how the conditions are at the Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, they are red-hot favourites. Make no mistake.
The Indian men’s team has been very serious about this event. They named the squad long ago under the new captain, Shreyas Iyer. It’s a full-fledged squad. And all those who are not part of it, it’s because of injury reasons, like yesterday Varun Chakaravarthy was ruled out of the Games due to a side strain. The Indian team is currently playing Afghanistan in a three-T20I series in New Delhi, and this should suffice ahead of the Asian Games challenge in terms of match practice.
Anyway, when all is said and done, it's safe reiterating that India are favourites to win both golds. If there is going to be an upset, it’s more likely to happen in men’s cricket. In light of India’s dismal T20I show in Ireland and England under Iyer, they should be desperate to win gold to alleviate the pain a bit. A gold medal is the need of the hour for Iyer to take that big stride as captain.