Legacy Hoped For Cricket In Japan Following 2026 Asian Games
There is hope that permanent cricket infrastructure can be built in the outskirts of Nagoya in a determined effort to leave a legacy for the sport in baseball-crazy Japan after next year's Asian Games.
In a recent announcement that provided widespread relief, cricket will be part of the multi-sports event held in Aichi-Nagoya following a decision by the Olympic Council of Asia and local organizing committee.
As I first reported late last year, cricket faced exclusion due to the difficulty of finding suitable infrastructure for cricket - played on an oval-shaped ground compared to baseball's smaller diamond field - proved difficult. Forbes Cricket Faces Asian Games 2026 Exclusion Ahead Of Los Angeles Olympics By Tristan Lavalette
The search had been far and wide, but it is learned that a couple of potential options to repurpose baseball stadiums were dismissed because the sites were too small. The Sano International Cricket Ground, the premier ground in the country, is deemed too far away being around 300 miles from Nagoya.
A new site has been identified on the outskirts of Nagoya, believed to be about 30 minutes from downtown by transport and located near a train line. The vast park has three baseball fields and initial discussions have revolved around repurposing it into a permanent cricket ground.
Japan have been part of the cricket competitions at the Asian Games previously (Photo by Jamie ...) Getty Images
The Asian Cricket Council and local cricket administrators are determined for the Asian Games to leave a legacy in Nagoya and beyond. They are hoping to avoid a temporary stadium like what happened at last year's T20 World Cup in New York, which cost $30 million - as I first reported - but was bulldozed immediately after the event. Forbes New York Cricket Stadium Set To Cost $30 Million As Anticipation Builds For T20 World Cup By Tristan Lavalette
A final decision will be made by the local organizing committee and is expected next month as is the exact number of teams for the T20 competitions. Only six teams per gender will be participating in the Los Angeles Olympics, but there is an expectation that a higher number will be allocated for the Asian Games.
Cricket was played at the Asian Games in 2010, 2014 and 2023 where 15 men's teams and nine women's teams competed. Significantly India, the sport's financial power, participated having skipped in '10 and '14 and they won double gold in Hangzhou.
India won the Asian Games in Hangzhou (Photo by Sun Fei/Xinhua via Getty Images) Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images
Cricket's inclusion in the Asian Games is seen as vital for a sport, deemed by some metrics the second most popular in the world, trying to expand its traditional footprint beyond the British Commonwealth.
It is also important for the growth of cricket in Japan, a nation long infatuated by the bat and ball sport of baseball which has some characteristics similar to cricket. "When I first came to Japan, it was clear that there was talent here - more than I expected," Japan Cricket Association head of operations Alan Curr told me in 2023.
'It's a conclusion people jump to that Japanese kids will be good at cricket because of baseball, but you do see it particularly in the fielding and throwing. They have good hand-eye coordination.' Forbes Having Once Suffered From A Cut In ICC Funding, Japan Is Aiming To Rise In Cricket By Tristan Lavalette
Cricket had traditionally shunned multi-sports events, but that has changed over the past 15 years. As I reported late last year, cricket was a late inclusion for the upcoming Southeast Asian Games to be held in several cities in Thailand, including Bangkok, from December 9-20, 2025.
The T20 and T10 formats will be played in the biennial multi-sport event that started in 1959 and features around a dozen nations.
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