Japan Eliminated as Nepal, Afghanistan Advance After Washout

Persistent rain at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin cut short the final Group A match of the Asian Games 2026 men’s cricket tournament. The washout resulted in Japan’s elimination from the competition with only one point, while Nepal and Afghanistan secured their places in the quarterfinal stage. But another spell of rain resulted in an abrupt end to the contest.

Sent into bat during a contest restricted to 15 overs, Nepal managed to reach 149/4. The innings began slowly, with opener Kushal Bhurtel dismissed for four runs off 12 balls. However, Sundeep Jora provided stability and aggression, hitting a four and a six in the fourth over to accelerate his scoring to 30 off 16 balls. Although Aasif Sheikh, who shared a 50-run partnership with Jora, fell to Jake Kusuda-Nairn, and both Kushal Malla and Gulsan Jha were dismissed for two runs each, the momentum remained with Nepal. Nepal’s batters made their mark in a truncated 15-over affair. They rode on half-centuries from Sundeep Jora and Lokesh Bam to post 149 in their allotted quota of overs, asked to bat first.

Lokesh Bam proved instrumental in the final stages, finishing unbeaten on 52 from 22 deliveries. Bam’s aggressive approach included consecutive sixes against Declan Suzuki-McComb, while Jora reached his half-century as the pair pushed the total to an imposing score. Additional boundaries from Jora and late-innings sixes by Bam against Charlie Hara-Hinze and Ibrahim Takahashi ensured a strong finish before the rain returned, preventing any further play. Reo Sakurano-Thomas and Declan Suzuki-McComb were the primary wicket-takers for Japan.

Looking ahead, Nepal is set to face Sri Lanka in a quarterfinal match on Tuesday, September 29, having topped Group B with three points. Meanwhile, Afghanistan will take on India on Monday in a rematch of the 2023 final held in Hangzhou. The brief scores for the match were Nepal 149/4 in 15 overs (Jora 57*, Bam 52*; Sakurano-Thomas 1-7, Suzuki-McComb 1-19) against Japan, with the match resulting in no result due to weather.