India’s men’s cricket team advanced to the semifinals of the 2026 Asian Games after their quarterfinal against Afghanistan was abandoned due to persistent rain on Monday.
The heavy rain prevented the match from getting underway.
Under the tournament rules, the higher-ranked team advances to the next stage if a knockout match cannot be played because of adverse weather conditions.
India will now face either Sri Lanka or Nepal in the semifinals of the men’s cricket competition.
Earlier, arch-rivals Pakistan also qualified for the semifinals after their quarterfinal against Hong Kong was washed out.
In the semifinal, Pakistan will face the winner of the last quarterfinal between Bangladesh and Malaysia.
India entered the knockout stage with a strong squad featuring several established international players. T20 captain Shreyas Iyer is leading the side, with Tilak Varma serving as vice-captain.
The squad also includes Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Yash Thakur.
Former India cricketer VVS Laxman is serving as the stand-in head coach for the Asian Games campaign.
India are aiming to retain the gold medal they won in the men’s cricket competition at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. India were awarded the gold medal after their final against Afghanistan was washed out, with the higher-ranked side taking the title.
India’s women’s team has already defended its Asian Games title in Aichi-Nagoya. Harmanpreet Kaur’s side defeated Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final to claim the gold medal.
Source: Khaleej Times