Cricketers to get best rooms at Asian Games 2026, says Japanese official

Cricket is a minor sport in Japan, but it will provide the best accommodation to the participating teams, the official says.Cricketers at this month’s Asian Games in Japan will have better accommodation than athletes from many other sports, the head of Japanese cricket has said amid growing concerns about a lack of five-star hotels for players.A Sri Lankan official said this week that some of Asia’s top teams had raised doubts over facilities and accommodation at the games, taking place in Nagoya and the wider Aichi area from September 19.Cricket is a minor sport in Japan, and its fixtures will be played at a new purpose-built ground, with reports of tents serving as dressing rooms and distant toilet facilities.There is no dedicated athletes’ village at the games, with organisers instead relying on cabins in a cruise ship, rooms in temporary wooden containers and hotels.Organisers said last week that accommodation was already stretched to the limit after the number of Asian Games athletes ballooned to 17,000.The number of athletes in the 2024 Paris Olympics was about 11,000.The 20th Asian Games will run from September 19 to October 4 in Nagoya, central Japan [File: Issei Kato/Reuters]The cricket tournament is being run by the Asian Games organising committee in collaboration with the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).Japan-cricket-association" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="198576" data-entity-type="organization">Japan Cricket Association CEO Naoki Alex Miyaji said the two bodies had been discussing accommodation options “for a long time”.“The participating teams in cricket are being offered hotel accommodation,” Miyaji said on Wednesday.“Many other sports are being accommodated in much more limited facilities, such as a cruise ship or container hotels.”