The 20th Asian Games is all set to take place in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan from 19 September to 4 October 2026 and the attention has turned to India’s defence. They will look to build on their historic performance
three years earlier and will be defending 107 medals. That was India’s best-ever performance at the continental multi-sport event which was achieved in Hangzhou in 2023. The contingent returned with 28 gold, 38 silver and 41 bronze, finishing fourth in the overall medal table and beating the previous best of 70 medals from Jakarta 2018. Athletics, shooting, archery, wrestling, boxing and kabaddi all had plenty of medals while cricket’s return after a long absence also gave gold in both the men’s and women’s T20 events.
BREAKING
India is set to field a 492-member athlete contingent across 35 sports at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
The contingent comprises 265 men and 227 women, with athletics having the largest representation at 73 athletes.
Cricket T20 and shooting will each… https://t.co/Glbu1HpHet
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) August 22, 2026
The 2026 Games arrive with huge expectations. India is sending a large contingent of more than 500 athletes across dozens of disciplines. Olympic medallists such as PV Sindhu, Manu Bhaker, Mirabai Chanu and Aman Sehrawat headline the squad, while team sports including hockey, kabaddi and cricket enter as defending champions in several categories. Organisers have scheduled competition across 43 sports and nearly 470 medal events, with action beginning even before the official opening ceremony. Selection criteria have also been tough and has left India without teams in football and several other sports.
Cricket Returns at Asian Games as India Eyes Gold Defence
Cricket is back at the Asian Games, and India will arrive as the clear favourite to retain both titles. After securing men’s and women’s gold in the T20 format at Hangzhou 2023, the teams head to Aichi-Nagoya with high expectations. The women’s tournament will be played from 17 to 22 September. Defending champions India will open directly in the quarter-finals against hosts Japan on 18 September. The other quarter-finals are Bangladesh against China, Sri Lanka against Malaysia, and Pakistan against Thailand. Winners advance to the semi-finals on 20 September, with the final scheduled for 22 September.
The men’s competition will be played from 24 September to 3 October. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka received direct entry into the quarter-finals based on ICC T20 rankings. The remaining six teams were split into two preliminary groups. Group A features Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal; Group B comprises Hong Kong, Malaysia and Oman. The top two from each group join the seeded sides in the last eight. India will face the Group A runner-up in the quarter-final on 28 September. Pakistan meets the Group B runner-up the same day, while Sri Lanka and Bangladesh play the group winners the following day. Semi-finals are set for 1 October and the final for 3 October. Shreyas Iyer will captain the side for India as they look to defend their gold medal.
