India, the reigning T20 World Cup champion and home to the sport's richest league, needed every one of its 32 runs on Tuesday to beat Japan's national cricket team, a side that has been playing T20 internationals only since 2022, in the two countries' first-ever men's cricket meeting.
The match, held at the Sano International Cricket Ground in Tochigi Prefecture, was cut to five overs a side by a wet outfield, turning what organizers had billed as a showcase for Japanese cricket into a frantic sprint. India, batting first under captain Shreyas Iyer, collapsed to 32 for 4, with Abhishek Sharma out for a golden duck and Ishan Kishan managing just 3 off 6 balls. Iyer's 16 off 12 balls proved decisive. Japan chased hard, reaching 30 for 3 and needing eight runs off the final over before India's bowlers, led by two wickets from Washington Sundar, held on to win by two runs.
The fixture, dubbed the Suzuki Cup, opened a "Sport 75" initiative marking 75 years of diplomatic relations between India and Japan, and doubled as Japan's first-ever senior international against a full member of the International Cricket Council. Japan Cricket Association chief executive Naoki Miyaji called the visit of the world champions "a landmark occasion for cricket in Japan."
This is the first time we would be playing Japan and don't know much about conditions, the wicket, but looking forward to have a great match.
Shreyas Iyer, India captain, ahead of the match
A collapse that overshadowed the occasion
For a team stacked with players from the world's most lucrative domestic league, a five-over meltdown against a country better known internationally for baseball and sumo produced instant, gleeful reaction online, with Indian cricket fans flooding social media with jokes about the batting order and renewed complaints over the exclusion of teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi from the squad.
Japan's cricketing infrastructure remains small by international standards, but organizers on both sides described the match as a first step rather than a one-off, with further exchanges and development matches expected as part of the broader Sport 75 sporting partnership between the two countries.
