India vs Afghanistan Hourly Weather Update: What Happens If Asian Games Quarterfinal Is Washed Out
Fans are eager to see promising talents such as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Abhishek Sharma in action, but weather could play a major role in the contest.
India's campaign in the men's cricket competition at the Asian Games 2026 is set to begin on Monday against Afghanistan. Led by Shreyas Iyer, the defending champions earned a direct berth in the quarter-finals and will be aiming to retain the gold medal India won at the previous edition while emulating the success of the women's team. Fans are eager to see promising talents such as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Abhishek Sharma in action, but weather could play a major role in the contest. The match is scheduled to be held at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, where heavy rainfall is expected to threaten proceedings.
According to AccuWeather, conditions are expected to remain cloudy, with a 40-70 percent chance of heavy rain throughout the day. A thunderstorm alert has also been issued, raising the possibility of the match being abandoned without a ball being bowled.
Earlier in the day, the quarter-final between Pakistan and Hong Kong at the same venue was called off without the toss due to persistent rain. As a result, Pakistan advanced to the semi-finals by virtue of being the higher-ranked side in the ICC T20I Rankings.
What happens if India vs Afghanistan is abandoned?
If the quarter-final between India and Afghanistan is washed out, Shreyas Iyer and Co. will progress to the semi-finals as per the tournament regulations. India are currently ranked No. 1 in the ICC Men's T20I Rankings, while Afghanistan occupy the 10th spot.
India also won gold medals in both the men's and women's cricket events at the 2022 Asian Games (held in 2023 in Hangzhou). Interestingly, the men's team was awarded the gold medal after the final against Afghanistan was abandoned due to rain.
More recently, the India women's team successfully defended its title by defeating Sri Lanka in the final on September 22, securing the country's first gold medal of the ongoing Asian Games campaign.
Squads of men's match:
India: Shreyas Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Vipraj Nigam, Yash Thakur.
Afghanistan: Darwish Rasooli (c), Mohammad Ishaq, Imran Mir, Najibullah Zadran, Ismat Alam, Karim Janat, Nangeyalia Kharoti, Abdullah Ahmadzai, Khalid Taniwal, Mohammad Akram, Faridoon Dawoodzai, Farmanullah Safi, Hassan Eisakhil, Faisal Shinozada, Arab Gul Momand.
India Cricket Team
Afghanistan