Fresh from winning the Women’s Asia Cup, Harmanpreet Kaur-led India will begin their Asian Games cricket title defence against hosts Japan in Friday’s quarterfinal at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin.
India enter the knockout contest after defeating Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the Asia Cup final to secure a record-extending eighth continental crown. The defending Asian Games champions will now aim to carry that momentum into their first match of the tournament and move closer to retaining the gold medal won in Hangzhou in 2023.
The India vs Japan quarterfinal will begin at 10:30 AM IST and 2 PM local time. Sony Sports Network will broadcast the match, while live streaming will be available on Sony LIV. India and Japan have not previously faced each other in a Women’s T20 International.
India’s batting strength will be led by openers Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma. Mandhana arrives after an outstanding Asia Cup campaign in which she surpassed Mithali Raj’s tally of 10,868 runs to become the leading run-scorer in women’s international cricket. Her tournament also included a powerful 124 off 64 balls against Hong Kong. Shafali contributed 236 runs during the Asia Cup and was named Player of the Tournament. She also became the youngest and fastest player to complete 3,000 runs in Women’s T20 Internationals. Her aggressive batting at the top could help India take control of the quarterfinal early.
Captain Harmanpreet remains an important figure in the middle order, while Deepti Sharma provides balance through her batting and disciplined spin bowling. India have received another boost with Shreyanka Patil recovering from an ankle injury and being declared fit for the Asian Games. India squad: Harmanpreet Kaur (captain), Smriti Mandhana (vice-captain), Shafali Verma, Pratika Rawal, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh, G. Kamalini, Bharti Fulmali, Sree Charani, Renuka Thakur, Kranti Gaud, Arundhati Reddy, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav and Nandni Sharma.
Japan will rely on captain Mai Yanagida and the advantage of playing in familiar conditions. The 33-year-old all-rounder, who represented Japan at the 2014 Asian Games, has scored 777 runs and taken 27 wickets in 61 T20 matches. Left-arm pacer Ahilya Chandel could pose a threat after collecting 41 wickets in 48 matches. Erika Oda is the leading run-scorer among the players in Japan’s current squad, with 802 runs from 51 appearances. Kurumi Ota also brings Asian Games experience from the 2014 tournament.
Japan squad: Mai Yanagida (captain), Ahilya Chandel, Ayumi Fujikawa, Hinase Goto, Haruna Iwasaki, Shimako Kato, Ayaka Kato-Stafford, Elena Kusuda-Nairn, Akari Nishimura, Erika Oda, Meg Ogawa, Kurumi Ota, Seika Sumi, Erika Toguchi-Quinn and Nonoha Yasumoto. India will start as favourites, but the knockout format leaves little room for error. Japan will hope to use home support to create an upset, while India will target a commanding performance and a semifinal berth. Bangladesh await the winner after their quarterfinal against China was abandoned due to rain.
