India's twentieth Asian Games began, in a slightly unusual way, before the Games officially did.
While the cauldron in Nagoya waits until Saturday evening, Indian athletes have already been competing in Aichi Prefecture for two days — teqball from September 17, then the defending women's cricket champions taking on hosts Japan on the morning of September 18. It is a small scheduling quirk that captures something larger about this edition: a bigger programme, more sports, and an Indian contingent large enough that it can no longer wait politely for a ceremony.
Asian Games 2026: The Essentials
| Edition | 20th Asian Games |
| Host | Aichi-Nagoya, Japan |
| Dates | September 19 – October 4, 2026 |
| Opening ceremony | Saturday, September 19 — Paloma Mizuho Stadium, Nagoya |
| Closing ceremony | Sunday, October 4 — Paloma Mizuho Stadium, Nagoya |
| India's contingent | 496 athletes (264 men, 232 women) in 36 sports |
| India's last tally | 107 medals at Hangzhou — 28 gold, 38 silver, 41 bronze (4th) |
| Broadcast (India) | Sony Sports Network · streaming on SonyLIV |
This is Japan's fourth time hosting the Asian Games and the first since Hiroshima in 1994. Events are spread across Nagoya and the wider Aichi Prefecture, with a handful of venues purpose-built for the occasion — including a new cricket ground in Nisshin that will stage both T20 tournaments.
India's Contingent: 496 Athletes, 36 Sports
The headline number is 496. That figure includes badminton's PV Sindhu, long jumper Murali Sreeshankar, weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and wrestler Sujeet Kalkal, alongside the men's and women's hockey teams, both kabaddi squads, both cricket squads and a 30-strong shooting group that has historically been India's most productive single discipline.
Not everyone made the trip. In January, the Sports Authority of India and the Ju-Jitsu Association of India jointly decided against sending a ju-jitsu team, citing a lack of realistic medal opportunities — a small but notable sign that selection is being run on projected returns rather than participation for its own sake.
India's Day-by-Day Schedule: The Opening Week
All times below are Indian Standard Time. Japan runs 3 hours 30 minutes ahead of IST, which means most finals land in the Indian morning and early afternoon — unusually friendly viewing hours for an overseas Games.
| Date | India in action |
|---|---|
| Sep 17 (Thu) | Teqball — India's campaign begins |
| Sep 18 (Fri) | Women's cricket quarter-final v Japan (10:30 AM), soft tennis |
| Sep 19 (Sat) | Opening ceremony, Paloma Mizuho Stadium |
| Sep 20 (Sun) | Hockey (men v Indonesia), badminton, shooting, swimming, women's cricket semi-final |
| Sep 21 (Mon) | Kabaddi begins, hockey, badminton, boxing, shooting |
| Sep 22 (Tue) | Women's cricket medal match, hockey, kabaddi, badminton, shooting, gymnastics |
The shooting range at Aichi is where India's medal count usually starts moving. At Hangzhou the shooters returned 22 medals; the 30-member squad here — rifle, pistol and shotgun — is built around the same model of strong team events sitting alongside individual finals.
Cricket at the Asian Games 2026
Both tournaments are T20 competitions at Korogi Athletic Park in Nisshin, and India enter both as reigning champions from Hangzhou.
| Tournament | Dates | India's first match |
|---|---|---|
| Women's | September 17 – 22 | Quarter-final v Japan, Sep 18, 10:30 AM IST |
| Men's | September 24 – October 3 | Quarter-final, September 28 |
As full ICC members, both Indian teams are seeded straight into the quarter-finals — which is why the women's campaign is only three wins long and why the men's squad does not fly until well after the ceremony.
The men's dates — September 24 to October 3 — collide exactly with India's home ODI series against the West Indies, which is why the BCCI has named two entirely separate senior squads for the same fortnight. We covered that split in detail in our piece on the India squad for the West Indies 2026 series.
Names to Watch
PV Sindhu headlines the badminton challenge from September 20 at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium, in a 20-member squad that also carries Lakshya Sen, the Satwiksairaj Rankireddy–Chirag Shetty pairing and teenager Tanvi Sharma. India have never won Asian Games gold in badminton; the team events are probably the better bet than the singles draws.
Manu Bhaker returns in both the 10m air pistol and 25m pistol, individual and team. Notably, Olympic medallists Swapnil Kusale and Sarabjot Singh did not make the shooting squad — a reminder of how deep the domestic pool now is.
Joshna Chinappa will make her seventh Asian Games appearance, the most by any Indian athlete in the Games' history. She is joined in squash by 18-year-old Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh.
Aman Sehrawat and Antim Panghal lead an 18-strong wrestling squad split across freestyle and Greco-Roman. Lovlina Borgohain is the marquee name in an 11-member boxing team. Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar anchor the golf squad, and Sumit Nagal leads the tennis contingent.
One quieter story: Rohit Majgul, who qualified in judo at 66kg in February, is the first Siddi athlete to reach both the Commonwealth and Asian Games.
New Sports, New Medals
Aichi-Nagoya's programme is noticeably wider than Hangzhou's, and India have entered several of the newer additions. Surfing is the clearest example — India took all four available quotas through the Asian Surfing Championships, the country's first ever surfing berths at a Games of this size, with Kishore Kumar, Sivaraj Babu, Kamali Moorthy and Sugar Banarse selected.
India have also entered esports (nine athletes), mixed martial arts (six), sport climbing, kurash and teqball. None of these are guaranteed to produce medals, but they are the sports most likely to reshape what India's medal table looks like by 2030.
Can India Beat 107?
That is the number hanging over this campaign. Hangzhou produced 107 medals across 22 sports — a jump of more than 50% on Jakarta 2018's 70 — and India finished fourth behind China, Japan and South Korea.
Beating it will be harder than it looks. The Hangzhou haul leaned heavily on athletics (29 medals) and shooting (22), and both disciplines face stronger continental fields this time. The realistic upside lies elsewhere: the newly added sports, a broader shooting programme with more team events, and the five team titles that, if all successfully defended, would bank five golds before anything else is counted.
What is not in doubt is the scale of the attempt. A 496-athlete contingent across 36 sports is India arriving with the intention of competing everywhere rather than in a handful of strongholds — which, more than any single medal, is the real change since 2018.
Where to Watch in India
Sony Pictures Networks India acquired exclusive broadcast and digital rights for India and the subcontinent in April 2026.
Streaming: SonyLIV, with digital coverage live since September 17 to cover the events that started before the opening ceremony.
For related reading, see our coverage of the BRICS New Delhi Declaration 2026 and the Women's Asia Cup 2026 final.
Contingent sizes, squad lists, schedule and broadcast details compiled from Olympic Council of Asia and Indian Olympic Association releases, national federation squad announcements, and reporting by Olympics.com, Business Standard and The Economic Times. Schedules at multi-sport Games change frequently — check the official Aichi-Nagoya 2026 site for same-day timings. Last verified: September 18, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do the Asian Games 2026 start and end?
The 20th Asian Games run from September 19 to October 4, 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. Both ceremonies are at Paloma Mizuho Stadium in Nagoya. A few events, including India's women's cricket quarter-final, were played before the opening ceremony.
How many athletes has India sent to the Asian Games 2026?
496 athletes — 264 men and 232 women — across 36 sports.
Which titles is India defending?
Five team golds from Hangzhou: men's cricket, women's cricket, men's kabaddi, women's kabaddi and men's hockey.
Where can I watch the Asian Games 2026 live in India?
On Sony Sports 1, 2 and 5 in English, Sony Sports 3 in Hindi and Sony Sports 4 in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. Live streaming is on SonyLIV.
When does India play cricket at the Asian Games 2026?
The women's tournament runs September 17-22, with India's quarter-final against Japan on September 18 at 10:30am IST. The men's tournament runs September 24 to October 3, with India entering at the quarter-final stage on September 28. Both are at Korogi Athletic Park, Nisshin.
How many medals did India win at the last Asian Games?
A record 107 — 28 gold, 38 silver and 41 bronze — finishing fourth at Hangzhou. The previous best was 70 medals at Jakarta 2018.
Why are the Asian Games in Aichi and not just Nagoya?
The Games are co-hosted by Nagoya city and the wider Aichi Prefecture, with venues spread across the region. Officially the edition is branded Aichi-Nagoya 2026.
Is India competing in the new sports at these Games?
Yes. India have entered esports, mixed martial arts, surfing, sport climbing, kurash and teqball. The four surfing quotas are India's first at an Asian Games.