Asian Games 2026: No toss, but Bangladesh reach semis as China crash out
Bangladesh advance to the Asian Games women's cricket semifinals after their quarterfinal against China was cancelled due to bad weather, under a ranking-based tiebreak rule.
The women's cricket tournament has begun at the Asian Games 2026, with eight teams competing in a straight knockout format. The event took an unusual turn when the quarterfinal between Bangladesh and China on September 17 had to be cancelled without a toss.
The match was scheduled to start at 5:30 am IST at Kororgi Sports Park, but play could not begin due to bad weather. Umpires waited a long time, but called off the match once conditions were deemed unfit. The cancellation worked in Bangladesh's favour, sending them into the semifinals, while China's campaign ended without playing a single match.
A special rule was framed for cricket at the 2026 Asian Games: if a knockout match is cancelled due to rain or any other reason, the team with the higher ranking advances to the next round. Bangladesh's ICC ranking and tournament ranking are better than China's, who are ranked 36th. As a result, China were knocked out without playing, while Bangladesh advanced. Should Bangladesh win their semifinal, they will play directly for the gold medal in the final; if they lose, they will play the bronze medal match.
Meanwhile, the Bangladesh cricket team has received another setback. Nigar Sultana has decided to step down as captain. She will no longer lead the T20 side after the Asian Games, as she wants to focus on her batting and wicketkeeping. She informed the board of her decision by email. Sultana will, however, continue as captain of the ODI team. She became T20 captain in 2022 and has led Bangladesh in 80 T20 matches so far. Her aim will be to help the team perform well and succeed at the Asian Games.
The Indian women's team won the cricket gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games. This time, India will begin their campaign against Japan. The quarterfinal between the two teams will be played on September 18, starting at 10:30 am IST. Should India reach the semifinals, they could face Bangladesh. Earlier, the Indian team had shown their dominance by winning every match in the Asia Cup one-sided. The team now has its sights set on gold at the Asian Games.
