The men’s cricket tournament at the Asian Games 2026 is set to take place from September 24 to October 3, with 10 teams competing for the gold medal. The tournament will feature a mix of established cricketing nations and emerging teams, with the competition set to intensify in the knockout stages. Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal have been drawn in Group A, while Hong Kong China, Malaysia and Oman make up Group B. The teams will compete in a round-robin format during the group stage, with the top two sides from each group advancing to the quarter-finals. The quarter-final stage will also see four seeded teams, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, enter the competition. India will begin their Asian Games 2026 campaign against the runners-up of Group A on September 28. On the same day, Pakistan will take on the runners-up of Group B in another quarter-final. The
remaining two quarter-finals will be played on September 29. Sri Lanka will face the winners of Group A, while Bangladesh will meet the winners of Group B for a place in the semi-finals. The semi-finals of the men’s cricket tournament are scheduled to take place on October 1. The teams that advance will then compete for the gold medal in the final on October 3, while the losing semi-finalists will battle for the bronze medal on the same day. With India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka entering directly at the quarter-final stage, the Asian Games 2026 men’s cricket tournament promises a closely contested knockout phase. The competition will culminate on October 3, when the gold and bronze medals are decided.
