India set to face Japan in historic first men's T20I as Japanese cricket chases its defining moment

India ready for landmark clash in Sano as cricket makes its loudest pitch yet in Japan

By Tuesday, weather permitting, India will walk out against Japan in the country's first-ever men's senior international against a Full Member. For the Japan Cricket Association (JCA), getting to this point is success in itself — the scoreline almost secondary.

"A lot of success has almost already happened," said JCA COO Alan Curr, who on Sunday morning was pulling covers off the wicket ahead of an approaching typhoon before later putting up hospitality tents and checking security plans. "The fact that India have agreed to come, the fact that I'm sitting here talking to you guys, the fact that Japanese media are coming to learn about cricket — we're having successes already."

How a historic fixture was born from clay

The landmark match was never part of Japan's grand plan to expand the sport. It began, quite literally, with clay. Eighteen months ago, the JCA set out to relay the turf square at Sano with help from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), whose groundsman travelled to Japan to identify suitable clay. The same surface was eventually used to build the Asian Games venue in Nagoya, prompting a simple thought: if Japan had international-quality wickets, why not invite the world's best teams to use them?

Once the pitches were completed in March, Japan prepared a proposal and sent it to every Full Member ahead of the ICC conference in Edinburgh. Conversations with the BCCI began there — and, to Curr's surprise, moved quickly.

"The BCCI were really keen to have an opportunity to train. It's huge credit to them that they're excited about coming here and building this relationship with the JCA."

The timing made sense. With the Asian Games beginning days later, India's men's squad would otherwise spend nearly a week waiting for their knockout fixture without access to proper cricket facilities. Sano offered both a training base and, eventually, a match — again, with fingers crossed that the weather doesn't play spoilsport.

Cricket's quiet, but steady, growth in Japan

Cricket is not new to Japan, having been introduced in the 1870s, but adaptation is a different story. Baseball, football, sumo wrestling, basketball, golf, tennis and boxing all command bigger audiences. India's arrival, however, represents cricket's loudest introduction in recent memory.

Behind the scenes, the sport has been expanding steadily. Registered players have risen from around 3,000 when Curr arrived in 2014 to 8,800 today. The Japan Cup — the country's T20 competition — has grown from barely a dozen teams to more than 80, while the domestic 40-over league now spans four divisions.

"Kaizen is the word. Continual improvement. That's what we're trying to do for the sport. But now and again there are moments like this where you can accelerate that."

Winning hearts, not necessarily the match

Japan harbours no illusions about the cricketing challenge ahead. "This India team is pretty good," Curr said matter-of-factly. "It's going to be an extremely difficult challenge for players who have never played at that level before." Instead, his measure of success is cultural.

He points to Japan's women's team, praised recently for staying back after their Asian Games fixture against India to thank supporters and mingle with fans — the identity he wants the men's side to showcase too.

"We want cricket to be played hard but also be accessible and friendly. We want cricket to be fun."

"It certainly helps to say that the reigning world champions, the No. 1 ranked team in the world, are coming to Japan," Curr said. "It's piquing interest, but we've still got a long way to go before cricket breaks into the mainstream sporting audience."

Asian Games offer a springboard

The timing is ideal: cricket returns to the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya just days later, allowing Japan to explain the sport through one of the country's most recognisable sporting events.

"The Asian Games gives cricket legitimacy that it didn't have before. You can't be what you can't see."

Japan has played in Under-19 World Cups, faced India and Pakistan at youth level and competed in the Asian Games with its women's team, but a senior men's clash against a Full Member is different gravitas entirely. If thousands of first-time spectators leave Sano remembering more than just India's star power, Japanese cricket may have achieved exactly what it came for.

The India vs Japan T20I will be broadcast live on FanCode on September 22 at 9:30 am IST.