India vs Afghanistan, Asian Games 2026: India qualify for semi-finals as rain abandons quarterfinal

IND vs AFG Live Score: Rain could have a major say in India’s Asian Games 2026 title defence as the defending champions take on Afghanistan in the second quarterfinal at the Aichi Prefectural Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin on Monday, September 28. With heavy showers forecast, India could advance to the semifinals without taking the field if the knockout clash is completely washed out, with the tournament rules favouring the higher-seeded side.

India vs Afghanistan: Stakes and Recent Context

India head into the quarterfinal as favourites, with a near full-strength T20I squad led by Shreyas Iyer. The team will also draw confidence from its recent form, having swept Afghanistan 3-0 in a bilateral T20I series in New Delhi just two weeks ago.

Afghanistan, meanwhile, are competing with a second-string and relatively inexperienced squad, with several of their leading players rested ahead of their upcoming Test against Bangladesh. Led by Darwish Rasooli, the young Afghan side progressed from Group A but suffered a five-wicket defeat against Nepal in the group stage.

India, however, will be wary of taking Afghanistan lightly, particularly with the weather and playing conditions likely to add an element of uncertainty to the contest.

Afghanistan Squad: Mohammad Akram, Hassan Eisakhil, Karim Janat, Faisal Shinozada, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Ishaq(w), Darwish Rasooli(c), Nangeyalia Kharoti, Abdullah Ahmadzai, Faridoon Dawoodzai, Arab Gul Momand, Ismat Alam, Farmanullah Safi, Khalid Taniwal, Imran Mir

India Squad: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Yash Thakur, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Vipraj Nigam