The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has agreed to send both men's and women's teams to the Asian Games 2023. However, due to the upcoming ICC ODI World Cup 2023, India will field a men's B cricket team while the women's senior team will participate in the Asiad for T20I games. The BCCI will submit the list of players to the Indian Olympic Association before June 30.
The BCCI was not committed to sending cricket teams to the 19th edition of the Asian Games due to the tournament's collision with the schedule of the ICC World Cup. Asian Games 2023 kicks off on September 23 and will be held till October 8 in China's Hangzhou while the BCCI is hosting the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 from October 5 to November 23.
Now according to a report from IndianExpress, the governing body will be sending men's second-string team to the Asian Games. The majority of senior star players will be part of India's World Cup squad but the BCCI is expected to name a strong side for Asian Games due to the rich talent available in Indian cricket.
Meanwhile, India will field the women's first-string team for the Asian Games. Women in Blue will travel to Bangladesh for a six-match white-ball tour next month and then are expected to host South Africa in September.
Notably, this is the first time India will be having cricket teams participating in the Asian Games. The women's cricket team featured in the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in July and August where they won the Silver medal after a defeat against Australia in the final.
Cricket was first included in Asian Games in 2010 and was also a part of the 2014 edition. However, the game was dropped for the 2018 edition in Jakarta but was included in the 2022 edition. The latest edition was supposed to take place from 10 to 25 September 2022 but was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic in China.
