Why Team India is Sending the Best Team for Asian Games Cricket 2026?

The Indian cricket team is currently playing the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. However, behind the scenes, the preparations are right there for the upcoming major events, and one among them is the Asian Games 2026, which will have cricket as one of its sports.

The Asian Games 2026 is all set to be played from September 19 to October 4, 2026 in Japan's Aichi and Nagoya prefectures. The game of cricket will be under the spotlight, and will see ten men's and eight women's teams playing at the Korogi Athletic Park in Aichi prefecture.

Interestingly, Team India is all set to send their “A” team for the Asian Games and will be led by Suryakumar Yadav. In women’s cricket, Harmanpreet Kaur, one of the best T20 batsmen, will be at the helm of things in the global event.

Why India is Sending Best Team for Asian Games Cricket 2026?

The Indian cricket team Asian Games squad is likely to be strong given their stature in world cricket. While India women’s cricket team has always featured their full strength side, this will be the first time that the men’s side will send their “A” team. The development was confirmed by sources close to The Times of India, who said:

“India will send its ‘A’ team when the final names are decided at the end of May. The BCCI has sent the names of leading men and women cricketers to the IOA. All the top cricketers will be available for selection,” a source told TOI.

With India set to send their A team for the tournament, many have been wondering about its reason. However, the reason behind that is very simple. India, one of the best cricket teams in the world, want to keep the LA Olympics 2028 as their priority.

Recently, Gautam Gambhir also expressed his desire to win gold at the LA Games. Although, his contract runs till the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027, some reports recently suggested that Gambhir is very keen to win gold and might get his contract extended. This is likely to be the reason as Indian cricket team Asian Games preparation has already started.

“India are the defending champions, having won gold in both men's and women's categories at the Hangzhou Asiad in 2023. With the inclusion of cricket at the LA Games, multisport events such as the Asiad and Olympics have become important,” the source added.

Which Indian Cricketers Will Play Asian Games 2026?

The sources have confirmed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have already shortlisted a few players, will be there in the Asian Games. The first-choice players in T20Is like Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Varun Chakaravarthy, and others are likely to be the Indian cricketers in Asian Games this year.

India Squad for Asian Games Cricket 2026 (Probable)

Suryakumar Yadav, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, and Rinku Singh.