Delhi: Japan did not get a cricket medal in the Asian Games held in Aichi-Nagoya, but Japanese cricket benefited a lot from these games. Abhiram S Yadav, representative of associate members in the Chief Executive Committee of the International Cricket Council (ICC), believes that Japan has set a good example for other small cricket countries.

Made Asian Games a big opportunity

Abhiram said, “Japan showed that the Asian Games are not just an opportunity to play and participate in competitions.

We showed how cricket can be taken forward in Japan through these Games. Other associate countries can also learn from this.”

According to him, the Japan Cricket Association (JCA) used the opportunity of the Asian Games to make cricket accessible to more people. Along with this, attention was also paid to improving the cricket facilities in the country and taking help from the government and business.

Got big recognition from the match against India

On September 22, Japan played a historic T20 International match against India.

This match, held at Sano's International Cricket Ground, was reduced to only five overs due to rain. Despite this, Japan played brilliantly and lost the match by just two runs.

Abhiram said, “The ICC is constantly trying to take cricket to more countries. It was a big step to bring India and Japan together, but after this, Japan used this opportunity well, which is very important.”

Attention was also paid to grounds and facilities

Japan had prepared a cricket ground at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin shortly before the Asian Games.

ICC East Asia-Pacific qualifying matches were also played here in the year 2026. After this, the Asian Games cricket competition was organized on the same ground.