The weather overshadowed the Asian Games Men’s Cricket Competition in Nisshin after all four quarter-final matches were thwarted by rain, allowing the pre-tournament favourites straight passage to the semi-finals. These matches, slated for Thursday, see Pakistan clashing with Bangladesh at 9am and India taking on Sri Lanka at 2pm.
Nisshin, unfazed by the rains, will continue to host the semi-finals along with Saturday’s medal matches, including the final and the third-place playoff. Encouragingly, the weather forecast looks promising, though there’s still some apprehension about rain on the days ahead.
In the event of a tie in any upcoming matches, a Super Over—a one-over-per-side play-off—will settle the outcome. If the weather plays spoilsport again, preventing either the match or a Super Over, the higher-seeded team will advance to the next stage; this scenario gives India and Pakistan the upper hand in their respective semi-finals. Should the final itself be rained out, then both finalists will collectively take home the gold medal.
None of the semi-finalists have had the chance to actually play a game yet due to the straightforward passage ensured by their seedings and unkind weather. Meanwhile, teams like Nepal, Afghanistan, Malaysia, and Hong Kong—having battled through the group stages—find their campaigns ending with a win, a loss, and a washout each, leaving them out of the running for medals.
