Asian Games 2026 Cricket: Can India defend both gold medals?

The Asian Games are here, and cricket will be one of the key sports for India as the country returns to defend the two gold medals won at Hangzhou 2023.

Cricket's journey at the Asian Games has been anything but consistent. The sport made its debut at the Guangzhou Games in 2010 and returned at Incheon in 2014, before being left out of the Jakarta 2018 programme. It returned at Hangzhou in 2023, where India made its Asian Games cricket debut.

India did not participate in the 2010 and 2014 editions but made an immediate impact on its first appearance, with both the men's and women's teams winning gold.

Three years later, India are back in Japan with the same objective. Both competitions will be played in the T20 format, with the women's tournament beginning on September 17 and the men's competition following from September 24.

Both India’s men’s and women’s teams will begin their Asian Games campaigns in the quarter-finals as they look to defend the gold medals won at Hangzhou. In the women’s tournament, India will face Japan. Bangladesh will play China, Sri Lanka will take on Malaysia, and Pakistan will face Thailand. The winners will move into the semi-finals before the medal matches.

The men’s tournament will have a group stage, with Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal in Group A and Hong Kong China, Malaysia and Oman in Group B.

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are the seeded teams and will enter directly at the quarter-final stage.

India will face the second-placed team from Group A.

India's gold medal defence

India will enter the Asian Games as the defending champions in both the men’s and women’s competitions, with the aim of defending the two gold medals won in Hangzhou.

In the women’s tournament, India and Sri Lanka currently look like the two teams in strongest form. The two sides recently met at the Asia Cup, where India won the title. Bangladesh could be just behind them in the race for the medals, while Japan could provide a surprise with the advantage of playing at home.

In the men’s tournament, India are ranked No.1 globally, followed by Pakistan at No.6, Bangladesh at No.8, Sri Lanka at No.9 and Afghanistan at No.10. On paper, India have the advantage, but there could still be some challenges along the way.

Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are the teams that could create some problems for India in the knockout stage. Afghanistan could be the dark horse of the tournament, as they have been in some previous editions, while Pakistan may create some small problems for India if things go their way and if they reach the final. For India, however, the main task will be to avoid those potential setbacks and carry their recent form into the knockout stage as they look to defend another Asian games gold.

The Shreyas Iyer challenge

The Indian men's side will be led by Shreyas Iyer, with Tilak Varma as vice-captain.

The squad combines established international names with several players looking to make their mark on the Asian Games stage. Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan provide the wicketkeeping options, while Abhishek Sharma, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar add depth across the batting and all-rounder departments.

Jasprit Bumrah headlines the pace attack, while Ravi Bishnoi and Washington provide spin options.

The squad, however, has undergone changes in the build-up to the Games. Varun Chakravarthy was ruled out with a side strain, with young leg-spinner Vipraj Nigam named as his replacement. Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was originally part of the squad, was subsequently withdrawn after being included in India's ODI squad for the West Indies series.

The final squad also includes teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who will be among the players attracting attention during India's campaign.

Harmanpreet returns to lead India

The women's team will be led by Harmanpreet Kaur, with Smriti Mandhana as vice-captain.

The side features a strong mix of experience and youth, with Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, Radha Yadav and Renuka Thakur among the established names.

G Kamalini is the second wicketkeeping option alongside Richa, while Bharti Fulmali, Sree Charani, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil and Nandni Sharma complete the squad.

Pratika Rawal has replaced the injured Jemimah Rodrigues in the squad. Rawal was brought into the Asia Cup and Asian Games groups after Rodrigues was ruled out with a hamstring injury.

India arrive in Japan having recently won the Women's Asia Cup, where they beat Sri Lanka in the final. That gives the defending champions another opportunity to build on their recent success in the shortest format.

Indian Squads

Men's: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yash Thakur, Vipraj Nigam.

Women's: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wicketkeeper), Gunalan Kamalini (wicketkeeper), Bharti Fulmali, Sree Charani, Renuka Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav, Nandni Sharma.

Schedule
Women's

September 18 - Quarter-final: India vs Japan, 10:30 AM IST

September 20 - Semi-final, if qualified

September 22 - Bronze medal match / Gold medal match

Men's

September 28 - Quarter-final: India vs second-placed Group A team, 10:30 AM IST

October 1 - Semi-final, if qualified

October 3 - Bronze medal match / Gold medal match

Where to watch?

The Asian Games will be broadcast on Sony Sports Network, with live streaming available on SonyLIV.