The Asian Games 2026 set to be jointly hosted by Japan’s Aichi Prefecture and its capital Nagoya, will feature Cricket and mixed martial arts, while open water swimming has been excluded.
The decision was announced during the organizing committee’s board meeting in Nagoya, coming after a request from the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). With the evolving landscape of cricket, the committee is trying to stage cricket within the prefecture. Currently, Aichi has no venue for hosting the sport.
In 2010, cricket made its debut in the Asian Games as a medal event with Bangladesh winning the men’s gold and Pakistan winning the women’s gold. However, in the 2018 edition it was dropped but was reinstated for the 2023 Games in Hangzhou, with India winning both the men’s and women’s gold medal.
In August 2019, the Commonwealth Games Federation announced that the bid had been successful with women’s cricket being added to the 2022 programme. In the 2022 Commonwealth Games program, held in Birmingham, the Women’s T20 saw their successful inclusion. The event saw India lose to Australia in the final, securing a silver medal, while New Zealand thumped England to take the Bronze.
Sano in Tochigi Prefecture known for hosting domestic and international cricket events is being considered as a potential site for the sport. In recent developments, the Sano International Cricket Ground witnessed Japan’s men’s team qualify for the Under-19 World Cup for the second time in their history, to be held later in Namibia and Zimbabwe.
The inclusion of cricket marks the major development of sports in East Asia, where T20 cricket is gaining traction across multi-sport platforms.
Building on the momentum, cricket is set to return in the Olympics Games 2028 in Los Angeles. These developments underline cricket’s growing global appeal, while the 2026 Asian Games promises a dynamic mix of traditional and emerging sports, reflecting Asia’s diverse sporting passion.
Loves all things female cricket