India–Pakistan clash possible only in medal rounds at Asian Games

India and Pakistan will not meet in the early stages of the Nagoya Asian Games, with the draw ensuring that any clash between the rivals can only occur in the gold‑medal match or the bronze‑medal play‑off. Both teams are top seeds in the men’s competition and enter directly into the quarterfinals on September 28, placed on opposite sides of the bracket. The semifinal structure means India, in Quarterfinal 2, and Pakistan, in Quarterfinal 1, can advance without crossing paths until October 3.

The women’s draw mirrors this separation. India, seeded first, face Japan in their quarterfinal, while Pakistan meet Thailand. Should both progress, they can only meet in the final or the bronze‑medal play‑off on September 22. All matches will be played in T20 format at Paloma Mizuho Stadium. Cricket runs from September 17 to October 3, with India already naming squads led by Shreyas Iyer and Harmanpreet Kaur.