Asian Games 2026: No India-Pakistan cricket match unless it’s for the medal
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Asian Games 2026: No India-Pakistan cricket match unless it’s for the medal")
Asian Games 2026 No India-Pakistan cricket match unless it’s for the medal Photograph: (AFP)
India and Pakistan can only meet in a medal match at the 2026 Asian Games after being placed on opposite sides of the cricket tournament draw.
Arch-rivals India and Pakistan are unlikely to meet across men’s or women’s cricket at the upcoming Nagoya Asian Games unless it’s for the medal. Unlike other ICC or ACC events, where the two Asian giants are often placed together for engagement and subsequent monetary purposes, the two teams might not play each other at all in this tournament unless it's the gold medal match. Considering there is always a chance for them to meet up in a cricket tournament, chances are bleak for the upcoming edition because the draws are such.
The 2026 Asian Games will take place from September 19 to October 4, with cricket scheduled from September 17 to October 3, starting with the women’s cricket. The women’s cricket final will take place on September 22, after which the men’s competition gets underway. 10 teams in each division will compete in this medal event.
The defending gold medal winners, India, alongside Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, are seeded directly into the quarterfinals; the remaining six teams, including Afghanistan, will contest for a knockout place in the group stage. While India will play in quarterfinal 2, Pakistan is placed in quarterfinal 1, with the two games scheduled for September 28. Their opponents will be the teams that advanced through the group stage.
The semifinal seeding ensures that the winner of quarterfinal 2, which could be India, will face the winner of quarterfinal 3; whereas, the winner of quarterfinal 1, likely Pakistan, will face the winner of quarterfinal 4. The two semifinals are also scheduled on the same day (October 1).
Such a scenario means only one thing: India and Pakistan can meet only in a gold medal match, or in the bronze medal match, should the two lose their respective semifinals.
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Meanwhile, other than Afghanistan, the remaining teams in the men’s category are Nepal, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Malaysia and Oman.
No IND-PAK Face-off in Women’s Category
Likewise, in the men’s event, India and Pakistan are highly unlikely to meet in the women’s category as well, again, unless it’s for a medal.
In the women’s competition, India is ranked number one, while Pakistan is seeded fourth behind Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, respectively. However, their draw sees India facing Japan in the quarterfinal, and upon progressing, their likely opponents would be Bangladesh or Hong Kong, China.
On the other hand, Pakistan will face Thailand in their quarterfinal fixture, and should they win, they will face one of Sri Lanka or Malaysia. A potential Indian women’s vs Pakistan women’s match could, therefore, only be possible in the final or the bronze-medal play-off, scheduled for September 22.
The Korogi Athletic Park in Aichi Prefecture will host all cricket matches.
