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Asian Games 2026: Rain threat looms over India's opener against Afghanistan

Heavy precipitation is forecasted in Nisshin on Monday, putting the upcoming Asian Games men's cricket fixture between India and Afghanistan in serious jeopardy. Should the contest be entirely abandoned due to weather, India will advance directly to the semifinals courtesy of a higher seeding derived from international T20 rankings.

This situation mirrors the previous continental multi-sport event in Hangzhou, where the gold medal clash between these exact two adversaries was completely ruined by precipitation, allowing the higher-seeded squad to claim the title. Meanwhile, the Indian women's contingent has already secured top honors by defeating Sri Lanka by a massive margin of one hundred forty-seven runs.

Shreyas Iyer takes charge as captain for the men's contingent in Japan, supported by vice-captain Tilak Varma. Additional members spotted attending practice include Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, and young talent Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, alongside wicketkeeper Sanju Samson.

Recent matches at the same ground suffered heavily from poor weather, resulting in a washout for Malaysia against Oman and a no-result outcome between the hosts and Nepal. The squad enters the competition as back-to-back global T20 titleholders, hoping to successfully defend the gold medal achieved during the previous edition.

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