The Indian men’s cricket team takes the train to Nagoya and arrives in style for the Asian Games

Team India arrived in Nagoya and did so in typically Japanese fashion. The Indian men’s cricket team traveled from Tokyo to Nagoya on the Nozomi Shinkansen on Saturday, September 26, as they begin preparations for their 2026 Asian Games campaign. The squad boarded one of Japan’s fastest bullet trains for the trip ahead of their quarter-final against Afghanistan.

The official Instagram account of the Indian cricket team shared a glimpse of the journey, with several members of the team seen relaxing and enjoying the ride. “Tokyo Nagoya at bullet speed Good vibes just because #TeamIndia has arrived at #AsianGames 2026,” the team wrote in the caption.

The Nozomi Shinkansen operates on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen lines, connecting Tokyo with Nagoya and several other major cities. The choice of route was also part of the team’s pre-planned arrangements, with the Indian team earlier considering accommodation options in Tokyo and Osaka, both about an hour and a half from Nagoya by train.

Now in Nagoya, the Shreyas Iyer-led side will focus on the business end of the tournament. India will take on Afghanistan in the men’s cricket quarter-finals at Nisshin on Monday, September 28. The match will start at 10:30 IST.

India, one of the four seeded teams in the competition, entered the tournament directly in the quarter-finals along with Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The remaining six teams were divided into two groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the round of 16.

Afghanistan, Japan and Nepal were placed in Group A while Hong Kong China, Malaysia and Oman formed Group B. The men’s cricket competition is held from September 24 to October 3 and features 10 teams.

India will be aiming to retain the gold medal it won in Hangzhou in 2023. Cricket will be making its fourth appearance at the Asian Games, having previously featured in Guangzhou 2010, Incheon 2014 and Hangzhou 2023.

The 2026 Asian Games are being held in Aichi Prefecture from September 19 to October 4. The Indian women’s cricket team has already defended the gold medal in the current edition. On 22 September, India beat Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final at the Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin.

India posted 216/3 in 20 overs, the highest team total in women’s cricket at the Asian Games, before Sri Lanka posted 69 in 15.4 overs.

Team India for the 2026 Asian Games

Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shreyas Iyer (C), Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Yashkurshi Singh, Yavanaib.

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