Asian Games 2026 Cricket Draw: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka Receive Direct Entry to Knockout Stage

Asian Games 2026 Cricket Draw: Cricket’s biggest Asian powers—India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka—have secured automatic qualification to the knockout rounds of the Asian Games 2026 cricket competition in Japan. The men’s tournament will feature 10 teams, while the women’s event will have eight teams, with both competitions beginning from the quarter-final stage.

The draw also places India and Pakistan on opposite sides of the bracket, raising the possibility of a blockbuster final if both teams progress through the tournament.

Cricket’s return to the Asian Games is set to deliver another exciting chapter in the sport’s growing international journey, with the 2026 edition in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, featuring a compact but highly competitive format.

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka have all been granted direct entry into the men’s quarter-finals based on their rankings and status as the highest-seeded Asian teams. The move means the four cricketing giants will bypass the preliminary phase and begin their campaigns in the knockout rounds.

The men’s competition, scheduled from September 24 to October 3, will consist of ten teams:

• India
• Pakistan
• Bangladesh
• Sri Lanka
• Afghanistan
• Japan
• Nepal
• Hong Kong China
• Malaysia
• Oman

The remaining six teams will compete in a preliminary stage to determine the four sides that will advance to the quarter-finals.

Under the tournament structure, Afghanistan, host nation Japan, Nepal, Hong Kong China, Malaysia, and Oman will battle for the remaining knockout spots. The six teams have been split into two groups of three, with the top two from each group progressing.

For the women’s competition, which runs from September 17 to September 22, eight teams will compete:

• India
• Pakistan
• Sri Lanka
• Bangladesh
• Japan
• Thailand
• Malaysia
• China

Unlike the men’s event, all eight women’s teams will begin directly from the quarter-final stage, making every match a knockout contest from day one.

India’s women’s team, the defending Asian Games champions, has been drawn against host nation Japan in the quarter-finals. A victory would likely set up a semi-final clash against either Bangladesh or China.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s women’s side will take on Thailand, while Sri Lanka will face Malaysia in the opening round of the competition.

One of the biggest talking points from the draw is the placement of India and Pakistan in opposite halves of both tournaments. The arrangement significantly increases the possibility of an India-Pakistan final, a matchup that would undoubtedly become one of the most-watched events of the entire Asian Games.

India enters the tournament as one of the favorites after winning gold medals in both the men’s and women’s cricket events at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023. The men’s side defeated Afghanistan in the rain-affected final, while Harmanpreet Kaur’s women’s team secured India’s first-ever Asian Games cricket gold.

Pakistan, meanwhile, will be looking to reclaim regional supremacy after mixed performances in recent ICC events. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh also view the Asian Games as an opportunity to strengthen their standing ahead of cricket’s inclusion in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.

The 2026 Asian Games carry additional significance because they are expected to serve as a key benchmark ahead of cricket’s historic return to the Olympic Games after a gap of 128 years. With only six teams expected to participate in the Los Angeles Olympics, performances at major international events over the next two years could influence rankings and qualification discussions.

Cricket was reintroduced to the Asian Games in 2010 before returning again in Hangzhou in 2023. The success of the previous edition, particularly in terms of television audiences and digital engagement, has strengthened calls for cricket to become a permanent fixture in multi-sport events.

For emerging nations like Nepal, Oman, and Malaysia, the Asian Games present a rare opportunity to compete against some of the world’s best teams. Nepal, in particular, has enjoyed a rapid rise in recent years and will aim to continue its impressive development on the international stage.

Host nation Japan will also be eager to make an impression. While cricket remains a niche sport in the country, organizers hope the event will help introduce the game to a wider Japanese audience and contribute to its long-term growth across East Asia.

The condensed format means there will be little room for error. A single defeat in the knockout rounds could end a team’s medal hopes, increasing the pressure on favorites such as India and Pakistan from the outset.