Kuala Lumpur, May 31, 2026: Thailand, Malaysia and China have secured qualification for the women’s cricket competition at the 2026 Asian Games after finishing as the top three teams in the qualifying tournament held in Kuala Lumpur from May 26 to May 31.
Thailand and Malaysia contested the final of the qualifiers, while China claimed third place to complete the trio of teams advancing to the main event. The women’s cricket tournament at the Asian Games will be held in Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya, Japan, in September and October.
Thailand delivered a strong performance throughout the tournament, topping Group A with wins over Malaysia and Hong Kong. They continued their dominant run in the semi-finals, where they bowled out China for just 53 runs to secure an emphatic 83-run victory.
In the final, Thailand once again showcased their superiority, restricting Malaysia to 54 runs before comfortably chasing the target to win by nine wickets.
Malaysia recovered strongly after an early group-stage setback against Thailand, defeating Hong Kong to reach the knockout stage. In the semi-final, they successfully chased Nepal’s total of 126 for 6, winning by two wickets with eight balls remaining to book their place at the Asian Games.
China, meanwhile, secured third place by defeating Nepal in a rain-affected playoff match decided via the DLS method, winning by five wickets.
Thailand, one of the leading Associate nations in women’s cricket, previously competed at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2020 after qualifying in 2019. They currently sit 12th in the ICC Women’s T20I rankings, ahead of Malaysia (28th) and China (42nd).
The women’s cricket competition at the Asian Games will feature eight teams in the T20 format. Four Full Member sides — Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka — have qualified automatically, alongside host nation Japan, completing the line-up for the tournament.
