On Tuesday, Sri Lanka Cricket announced a 15-player men’s team for the upcoming 2026 Asian Games in Japan, naming Sahan Arachchige as captain and keeping Niroshan Dickwella in his role as wicketkeeper. The Sri Lankan team is set to depart for Japan on September 24, as the 10-team T20I tournament will take place from September 24 to October 3 at Kōrogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Aichi Prefecture.
The team is scheduled to leave for Japan on September 24, 2026. The T20I competition will take place from September 24 to October 3, 2026, with all matches held at Kōrogi Sports Park in Nisshin, Aichi Prefecture. Ten countries will compete in the men’s event.
The selectors have made significant changes from the group that toured England, keeping only Nuwan Thushara and Tharindu Ratnayake in this squad. Binura Fernando, who was unable to join the England tour due to injury, has now recovered enough to be chosen for the Asian Games, marking one of the most significant updates in this announcement.
The team is markedly different from the one that recently competed in Sri Lanka’s three-match T20I series in England, which the hosts won 3-0 after an eight-wicket triumph at Old Trafford on September 19. The significant contrast between England’s touring squad and the Asian Games team highlights the selectors’ aim to evaluate a wider range of players through the multi-sport event before upcoming fixtures.
Cricket has been featured in the Asian Games on three previous occasions, starting with its debut at the 2010 edition in Guangzhou, where Sri Lanka earned a bronze medal. Four years later, in Incheon, Sri Lanka outperformed Afghanistan in the final to win the gold medal.
The most recent edition, which took place in Hangzhou in 2023, concluded without Sri Lanka securing a medal. India won gold at that tournament, Afghanistan took silver, and Bangladesh earned bronze. Sri Lanka hopes to make a comeback onto the podium when competition kicks off in Japan later this month.
