New Delhi. Men's Asia Cup Rising Stars 2026 will see an exciting clash between India and Pakistan (India vs Pakistan). Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has released the schedule of the tournament to be held in Doha. India-A and Pakistan-A have been kept in the same group.
India-A will start its campaign against Nepal on 20th November. After this, India-A will face Pakistan-A on 22nd November at West End Park International Cricket Stadium. Whereas India-A will play the last match of the group stage against United Arab Emirates (UAE) on 24 November.
A total of eight teams have been divided into two groups in the tournament. Group A includes Sri Lanka-A, Bangladesh-A, Afghanistan-A and Hong Kong. Whereas, India-A, Pakistan-A, Nepal and UAE have got place in Group B. Each team will play one match each against the remaining three teams of its group. The top two teams of both the groups will reach the semi-finals. The semi-finals will be played on 26 and 27 November, while the final will be held on 29 November.
Most of the matches of the tournament will be played at West End Park International Cricket Stadium. The final will also be held on this ground. At the same time, some matches will be held at the University of Doha for Science and Technology (UDST) cricket ground. The opening match of the tournament will be played on this ground on 19 November.
Vaibhav also played last season
India-A was captained by Jitesh Sharma in the 2025 Asia Cup Rising Stars. Then Vaibhav Suryavanshi was also a part of the team. India-A made a great start by defeating UAE by 148 runs, but lost against Pakistan-A by eight wickets in the next match. After this, India-A defeated Oman by six wickets and made it to the semi-finals. There the match against Bangladesh-A was tied and the result came out of Super Over, in which India had to face defeat.
On the other hand, Pakistan-A defeated Sri Lanka-A by 5 runs in the semi-finals. Then Pakistan-A won the title by defeating Bangladesh-A through Super Over in the final. Now in the 2026 edition, India A will have a chance to leave behind the disappointment of the last tournament and show strength in the match against Pakistan.