The 20th edition of the Asian Games is set to take place in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, with athletes from 45 countries and regions competing across 43 sports.
The opening ceremony will be held on September 19 at the Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium, while the closing ceremony is scheduled for October 4 at the same venue.
However, sporting action has already begun ahead of the opening ceremony, with some events scheduled before September 19.
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India's campaign got underway before the official opening, with Indian athletes competing in teqball from September 17. The women's cricket team will begin its campaign on September 18 against Japan in the quarter-finals.
India will send a 503-member athlete contingent to Aichi-Nagoya, comprising 269 men and 234 women. The country's athletes will compete across 36 disciplines.
The competition schedule, however, begins before the opening ceremony, with events such as teqball, cricket and other disciplines getting underway earlier.
Asian Games 2026: India Schedule And Timings
India's first competitive appearance is scheduled for September 17, when Mohamed Anas Imran Beg and Declan Marshall Gonsalves will compete in the men's doubles qualification in teqball.
The Indian women's cricket team will then face Japan in the quarter-finals on September 18. The match is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. IST.
India's men's cricket team has received a direct entry into the quarter-finals and will play its first match on September 28. The women's and men's cricket teams are both defending their Asian Games titles.
Athletics will be held from September 24-29, while badminton is scheduled from September 20-29. Shooting will take place from September 20 to October 1, with Indian shooters including Manu Bhaker in action.
The Indian hockey teams will also be among the major attractions. The men's and women's hockey tournaments will run during the Games, with the winners earning direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
Asian Games 2026: Key Indian Athletes In Fray
India's 503-member contingent includes several Olympic and international medallists.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu will lead India's badminton challenge, alongside reputed names like Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
In shooting, double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker will be one of India's prominent competitors. Esha Singh, Suruchi Singh, Rudrankksh Patil, Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Anish Bhanwala are also part of the shooting squad.
Mirabai Chanu will lead India's five-member weightlifting contingent, while Lovlina Borgohain and Commonwealth Games champion Sakshi Chaudhary are among India's leading boxers.
In wrestling, Paris 2024 bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat will represent India.
Athletics will feature several established Indian names, including Avinash Sable, Gulveer Singh, Tajinderpal Singh Toor, Tejaswin Shankar, Jyothi Yarraji, Parul Chaudhary and Shaili Singh.
In cricket, Shreyas Iyer will captain the men's T20 team, with teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi also part of the squad. The women's team will be led by Harmanpreet Kaur.
Two-time Asian Games medallist Anahat Singh will also return in squash.
One notable absentee will be Neeraj Chopra, who withdrew from the Games because of an ankle injury. India will therefore enter the men's javelin competition without its defending champion.
Asian Games 2026: India's Key Schedule
September 17:
Teqball — India's campaign begins.
September 18:
Women's Cricket — India vs Japan, quarter-final, 10:30 AM IST.
September 20:
Badminton and several other individual and team competitions involving Indian athletes begin.
September 23-29:
Weightlifting competitions, including Mirabai Chanu's women's 49kg event and other Indian entries.
September 24-29:
Athletics, featuring several Indian medal contenders.
September 28:
Men's Cricket — India vs Group A runner-up, quarter-final.
September 30-October 3:
Wrestling competitions, with Indian athletes competing across men's and 's categories.
October 1:
Men's Cricket semi-final, subject to qualification.
October 3:
Men's Cricket bronze-medal match/final, subject to qualification.
October 4:
Closing Ceremony.
Asian Games 2026 Live Telecast
The Asian Games 2026 will be televised live in India on the Sony Sports Network.
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Asian Games 2026 Live Streaming
Fans can live stream the Asian Games 2026 in India on the Sony LIV app and website.
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