New Delhi, July 24 -- Four of Asia's strongest men's cricket sides will skip the qualifying stage and head straight into the knockout rounds at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have been given direct entry into the quarterfinals of the men's competition, according to the official draw.

The decision places these four teams among the top seeds for the tournament. They will wait for the remaining four quarterfinal spots to be filled by teams advancing from a short qualifying round. The arrangement ensures the strongest nations enter the medal race later in the event while giving emerging sides a clear path to test themselves against the best.

Six teams will fight for the four remaining ...