The men's cricket competition at the Asian Games 2026 began in Nagoya on 24 September with victories for Afghanistan and Malaysia. Afghanistan defeated hosts Japan by 48 runs, while Malaysia beat Hong Kong, China by eight wickets.
The results gave both winning teams an important early advantage in the preliminary group stage. The top two sides from each group advance to the quarter-finals, where India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh await.
Asian Games 2026 men's cricket Day 1 results
Afghanistan: 129/7 in 20 overs
Japan: 81 all out
Result: Afghanistan won by 48 runs
Hong Kong, China: 81/9 in 20 overs
Malaysia: 82/2 in 12 overs
Result: Malaysia won by eight wickets
Afghanistan recover to post 129 against Japan
Japan made an encouraging start when Reo Sakurano-Thomas dismissed debutant Hassan Eisakhil lbw for three. Afghanistan nevertheless rebuilt through Mohammad Akram, who scored 34 from 29 balls.
Captain Darwish Rasooli contributed 29 and Karim Janat added 21. Japan's Shoma Sugaya-Slater and Ibrahim Takahashi took two wickets each, but Mohammad Ishaq's unbeaten 25 from 17 deliveries lifted Afghanistan to 129 for seven.
Arab Gul and Nangeyalia Kharote dismantle Japan
Japan reached 53 for three in the eighth over and remained in contention. Reo Sakurano-Thomas made 23, while Benjamin Ito-Davis struck a rapid 17 from eight balls.
Afghanistan then took control through Arab Gul and Nangeyalia Kharote. Gul returned outstanding figures of 4/8 and left-arm spinner Kharote claimed 3/19 as Japan lost their final eight wickets for only 28 runs and were dismissed for 81.
Malaysia restrict Hong Kong to 81/9
Malaysia dominated the Powerplay in the second match, reducing Hong Kong, China to 31 for five. Pavandeep Singh produced three wickets in his second over and immediately placed the batting side under pressure.
Babar Hayat resisted with 29 from 39 balls, but Muhammad Amir's three-wicket haul prevented a recovery. Hong Kong completed its 20 overs on 81 for nine.
Virandeep Singh and Muhamad Syahadat finish the chase
Malaysia lost two wickets in the second over, briefly giving Hong Kong hope. Virandeep Singh and Muhamad Syahadat then controlled the chase with an unbeaten partnership.
Virandeep finished on 32 not out and Syahadat made an unbeaten 36 as Malaysia reached the target in 12 overs with eight wickets remaining.
What the results mean for India
Afghanistan moved ahead in Group A and Malaysia strengthened its position in Group B. India will enter directly in the quarter-finals on 28 September against the Group A runner-up.
Afghanistan next face Nepal on 25 September, while Japan meet Nepal on 26 September. Malaysia's next match is against Oman on 26 September. Those results will determine the final group standings and India's first knockout opponent.
Asian Games men's cricket format
Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal form Group A, while Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and Oman contest Group B. The top two teams in each group join the four seeded Full Member teams in the quarter-finals.
Semi-finals are scheduled for 1 October, followed by the bronze-medal match and gold-medal final on 3 October.
Scores and match details checked against the official ICC report on 24 September 2026.