Asian Games 2026 cricket schedule: Matches to be played from September 17 in T20 format

Japan is set to host the Asian Games later this year from September 19 to October 4. However, a few disciplines, including cricket, will start before the official opening ceremony, according to the schedule released by the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games Organising Committee (AINAGOC). As far as cricket is concerned, the matches will be played from September 17 in the T20 format in both men’s and women’s cricket. All the matches are set to take place at Korogi Athletic Park in Aichi Prefecture.

The women’s cricket tournament will commence on September 17 and the medal matches will get underway on September 22. Eight teams will compete, even as Team India will look to defend their gold medal, having won the tournament the last time around. With eight teams competing, it will be a direct knockout competition, starting from the quarterfinals.

When will the men’s cricket tournament start?

Meanwhile, the Indian men’s team had also won the gold medal in the 2023 Asian Games and they enter the 2026 Games as the defending champions. The men’s competition is scheduled to get underway on September 24, with the medal matches taking place from October 3. Unlike women’s cricket, the men’s competition will see 10 teams competing and there will be three days of some preliminary action before the high-stakes quarterfinals begin.

While the qualification format is not yet confirmed, if the same format as the 2023 Asian Games is followed, the top four seeded teams will start directly from the quarters. This will leave the rest of the six teams to play preliminary matches to determine the other four teams for quarterfinals.

As for the match timings, two games will be played on every day. The morning game will get underway at 9 AM local time (5:30 AM IST) and then at 2 PM local time (10:30 AM IST).