18 September,2026 08:23 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Devajit Saikia (Pic: File Pic)
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) held an Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Friday at the Headquarters in Mumbai.
After the meeting, the BCCI's secretary, Devajit Saikia, assured that the missing Asia Cup trophies won by the men's and women's teams will be brought to the headquarters.
"(The) Asia Cup trophies, we hope they will come one day. I will not give you a timeline, but I can assure you that both the trophies will land up in this office of the BCCI at the Wankhede Stadium," he told the reporters.
He then mentioned the Indian women's team's victory over Japan in the ongoing Asian Games 2026 and is also hopeful about Harmanpreet Kaur-led women winning the gold medal in the continental event.
"We congratulated our women's team for their superb victory in Dubai last week. They have very nicely won the first match against Japan and we hope that they will win the gold medal in the Asian Games on 22nd of this month," said Saikia.
Defending champions India secured a place in the Asian Games women's cricket semifinals following a comfortable eight-wicket victory against an inexperienced Japanese side.
Driven by Shree Charani's bowling figures of 4/10 and Shafali Verma's all-round performance, India dismissed Japan for just 57 runs before racing to the target in five overs. The victory sets up a semifinal encounter against Bangladesh on September 20.
Shafali starred in the short run-chase, smashing an unbeaten 40 off 15 deliveries alongside Richa Ghosh, who contributed a quickfire 12 from six balls. Japan managed some moments of celebration after removing opener Gunalan Kamalini and one-down batter Bharti Fulmali early in the innings, showing strong spirit despite defending a small target. However, the experience of Shafali and Ghosh easily carried India to victory without further alarm.
Opting to field first, the Indian spin attack dismantled the Japanese batting lineup, allowing only three boundaries throughout the entire 20 overs. Facing elite opposition, Japan's batters struggled to find their rhythm, generating just 24 runs in the powerplay with two boundaries, one of which came off a slip edge.
Left-arm spinner Charani sparked the collapse in the seventh over, dismissing opener Haruna Iwasaki for 10 and captain Mai Yanagida on consecutive deliveries to record her career-best T20 figures.
Shafali Verma then contributed with her off-spin, registering figures of 2/13. She removed Japan's top scorer Ayaka Kato-Stafford (25) and Shimako Kato in the 15th and 17th overs respectively, as their attempts at aerial shots were caught by Indian fielders. A turning pitch offering sharp bounce, combined with poor running between the wickets that led to two run-outs, further hampered Japan's progress.
(With PTI Inputs)
