The Asian Games or the Asian began in 1951. As of 2022, 19 editions of this multi-sport event have taken place thus far. However, cricket, a popular sport in South Asia has been a part of this event only three times. Cricket was a part of the Asian Games held in 2010, 2014, and 2023 (2022 Asian Games). It is scheduled to be a part of the 2026 Asian Games. Both men’s and women’s cricket events are held at the Asian Games.
The format followed in cricket at the Asian Games is T20 International. Thus far, 17 nations have participated in the men’s event, and 13 nations in the women’s event. In the men’s event, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have won the gold medal once each. Pakistan have won the gold medal in the women’s event twice. Three months prior to the games, the teams are chosen based on their rankings as per the International Cricket Council’s T20 rankings. Teams announce a 15-member squad after their selection, of which eleven are selected before each match.
The five highest ranked teams qualify for the quarterfinals. The remaining teams are divided into groups. In each group, teams play each other in the round-robin format. A win is worth two points, a drawn or tied match is worth one point, and zero points are deducted for a loss. If two teams are tied at the same number of points, then the net run-rate rate acts as a tiebreaker.
Table-toppers of each group are later placed in the quarterfinals against the top sides. From this point, the tournament follows a knockout format. The two losing sides of the semi-final face each other for the bronze medal match.
While the above-mentioned format was followed in the 2022 Asian Games, this format may vary depending on the number of teams participating in the event in later editions.
