---
title: "India to face Japan in one-off T20I at the Sano International Cricket Ground, Tochigi Prefecture; First India-Japan cricket meeting in any format"
sdDatePublished: "2026-09-05T14:32:00Z"
source: "https://www.olympics.com/en/news/india-vs-japan-one-off-t20i-cricket-2026"
topics:
  - name: "cricket"
    identifier: "medtop:20000888"
locations:
  - "Tochigi"
  - "Sano"
  - "Sri Lanka"
  - "Nepal"
  - "Malaysia"
  - "China"
  - "Oman"
  - "Pakistan"
  - "Bangladesh"
  - "Afghanistan"
  - "Japan"
  - "India"
---


India to face Japan in one-off T20I at the Sano International Cricket Ground, Tochigi Prefecture; First India-Japan cricket meeting in any format

Why India and Japan will play a one-off T20 cricket match ahead of Asian Games 2026

India to face Japan in one-off T20I on September 22 ahead of Asian Games 2026

Played under the banner of the Suzuki Cup, the IND vs JPN T20 match will launch the 75th anniversary celebrations of India-Japan diplomatic relations.

The Indian cricket team will face Japan in a one-off T20I at the Sano International Cricket Ground in Tochigi Prefecture on September 22.

The Japan Cricket Association (JCA) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced on Friday that the match will launch celebrations for the 75th anniversary of India-Japan diplomatic relations.

The India vs Japan T20 match will be played under the Suzuki Cup banner.

It will also be the first meeting between India and Japan in any format of international cricket .

World No. 1 India are the reigning T20 World Cup champions and three-time winners, while Japan are 41st in ICC’s 20-over men’s team rankings.

The match will give India an opportunity to acclimatise to local conditions ahead of the Asian Games 2026 , where both teams will compete.

Men’s cricket at the Asian Games , featuring 10 teams, will be held from September 24 to October 3.

Former India batter VVS Laxman will take charge as head coach, with regular head coach Gautam Gambhir staying back for India’s three-match ODI series against the West Indies, beginning September 27.

Laxman previously guided India to the gold medal at the Hangzhou 2023 Asian Games.

Shreyas Iyer has been named India’s T20 captain , with Tilak Varma as his deputy.

Teenage prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi , the youngest player to debut for the Indian men’s team, and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah are also part of India’s 15-member Asian Games squad .

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are the seeded teams and will enter the competition directly in the quarter-finals.

Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal are in Group A, while Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and Oman make up Group B. The top two teams from each group will progress to the quarter-finals.

Cricket will feature at the Asian Games for the fourth time. India, who did not participate in the first two editions featuring the sport, will enter the tournament as defending champions.

The complete list of Asian Games 2026 cricket squads