India to wear BCCI jersey for first international T20I against Japan

New Delhi: India will wear the official Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) jersey for their one-off T20I against Japan on Tuesday, marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The Shreyas Iyer-led Indian side will wear the official BCCI colours for the match at the Sano International Cricket Ground rather than the kit designed for the Asian Games, sources told IANS.

The match will be played two days before the start of the men’s cricket competition at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, where India and Japan will compete alongside eight other teams. The kit for the Asian Games cricket tournament will be different, as seen with the Indian women’s team.

The fixture will be the first international cricket match between India and Japan and will serve as a special event to inaugurate celebrations marking 75 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The match will also serve as the flagship event launching ‘Sport 75’, a broader bilateral initiative stemming from a summit agreement between Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi aimed at promoting sporting exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia said the fixture represented a significant moment for cricket.

“The BCCI is delighted to be part of this historic occasion as the Indian and Japanese men’s teams come together for a special T20 International in Japan. This is a significant moment for cricket, as it takes the Indian team to new territory and provides an opportunity to introduce the sport to a wider audience in Japan and East Asia,” Saikia said in a statement.

“India and Japan share a strong and longstanding relationship and friendship, and we are pleased that cricket will be part of the celebrations marking 75 years of bilateral relations between the two countries, and we thank the Japan Cricket Association (JCA) for its efforts in making this fixture possible,” he added.

With IANS inputs