Asian Games Adjust Men’s Cricket Timings for India’s Knockout Matches
The men’s cricket schedule at the Asian Games has been nudged forward, and it could matter when the pressure games arrive.
Organisers have advanced the start of some men’s knockout matches by 30 minutes. Afternoon fixtures that were originally slated for 2 pm local time will now begin at 1.30 pm. The women’s schedule, by contrast, stays exactly as it was.
For India’s men, already handed a direct berth into the quarter-finals of the Aichi-Nagoya Games 2026, the change is immediate and clear. Their first match is now fixed for a 1.30 pm start in Japan, which translates to 10 am IST, with Japan 3 hours and 30 minutes ahead. Morning games are untouched: they continue to begin at 9 am local time, or 5.30 am IST.
The pattern runs right through the business end. The second semi-final and the gold-medal match will also start at 1.30 pm Japan Time, keeping India’s likely route locked into that earlier afternoon slot. The first semi-final and bronze-medal play-off, though, stay in the 9 am window.
Curiously, not everyone has been brought up to speed. Indian Olympic Association officials say they have not been informed of any adjustment, even though the official website already reflects the revised timings. For now, the website is doing the talking.
The fine print of the change is specific. It applies to:
- the second quarter-final on September 28, India’s opening match,
- the second semi-final on October 1, where India are expected to feature if they progress,
- and the gold-medal game on October 3.
The first quarter-final, involving Pakistan, remains a 9 am local start, as do the first semi-final and the bronze-medal play-off.
There is no reshuffle for the preliminary-round fixtures featuring Afghanistan, Japan, Nepal, Hong Kong (China), Malaysia and Oman. Those matches keep their original slots. The women’s competition, which begins directly from the quarter-finals, also stays anchored to 9 am and 2 pm local time.
So why the tweak at the sharp end? Tournament sources point to a simple, practical concern: light. It gets dark early in Japan, and with no floodlights at the venue, the organisers decided it was safer to move the longer men’s games forward rather than risk overshooting daylight in high-stakes knockouts.
Outside the Games schedule, India’s build-up includes a T20I against Japan at Sano International Stadium on September 22. That match holds its own distinct timing: a 1 pm JST start, 9.30 am IST, another early marker for a campaign that now looks set to run on Japan’s afternoon sun rather than its evening shadows.
