India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka get direct entry into Asian Games 2026 knockouts

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have secured direct entries into the quarter-finals of both the men’s and women’s cricket competitions at the Asian Games 2026. The four nations qualified by virtue of being Asia’s ICC Full Member nations and will not need to play any preliminary matches.

All matches will be played in Nagoya, Japan, with both tournaments held in the T20 format and carrying full international status. India head into both competitions as defending champions, having won the men’s and women’s gold medals when cricket returned to the Asian Games at Hangzhou 2023. For Indian men, Shreyas Iyer will lead the side with Tilak Varma acting as the vice-captain.

Which teams will contest the preliminary round?

On the men’s side, six teams will compete in a preliminary group stage for the four remaining quarter-final spots. The six sides have been divided into two groups, Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal in Group A and Hong Kong, Malaysia and Oman in Group B, with the top two from each group advancing to the quarter-finals after round-robin matches. The men’s competition is scheduled from September 24 to  October 1.

In the women’s draw, eight teams will compete in a direct knockout format starting from the quarter-finals, with the competition running from September 17 to 22. Thailand and Malaysia secured their places through the qualifier, with Thailand winning the tournament and Malaysia finishing as runners-up. China claimed the final qualification spot by defeating Nepal in the third-place playoff.

How does the women’s quarter-final draw look?

The women’s quarter-final draw has been confirmed on July 23. India will face hosts Japan in one of the quarter-finals, while Bangladesh take on China. The other half of the draw features Sri Lanka against Malaysia and Pakistan against Thailand.

The fixtures give India a first competitive meeting with Japan at this level in the Asian Games. Pakistan and Sri Lanka face opponents who came through the qualification tournament, while Bangladesh meet China, who secured their place via the third-place playoff.