The men’s cricket competition at the Asian Games 2026 has reached its final four, with India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh now preparing for the medal battle in Japan. The two semi-finals will be staged on October 1 at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, setting up two important contests on the road to the gold medal.
Because of rain, allowing India to progress without a completed match, their quarter-final against Afghanistan was abandoned. India will meet Sri Lanka in the second semi-final, while Pakistan and Bangladesh will contest the opening semi-final. Both matches have survived a tournament schedule heavily affected by rain, with several quarter-final fixtures unable to produce a result on the field. India’s route into the last four was unusual. Sri Lanka experienced a similar situation against Nepal, with that quarter-final also washed out and the higher seeded side advancing.
The India and Sri Lanka semi-final is scheduled to start at 10:00 AM IST on October 1 at Korogi Sports Park. *Mohammed Saifuddin has been ruled out of the tournament, and no replacement player names have been announced yet. India enter the knockout phase as the defending men’s champions. The side, led by Shreyas Iyer, will now have the opportunity to move one step closer to retaining the title. India’s women’s team has already delivered gold at these Games under captain Harmanpreet Kaur.
