Japan secure qualification for the Men's U19 Cricket World Cup 2026

Japan became the latest side to secure their place in next year's ICC Men's U19 World Cup, scheduled to be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia next year. The East Asian side will make its second appearance at the event, having previously featured in 2020 in South Africa.

Japan secured their place through Division-1 of the East-Asia Pacific Qualifier. The side won each of their four contests in the event, beating Papua New Guinea and Fiji twice to top the table.

Earlier this month, Afghanistan and Tanzania earned their place in the ICC Men's U19 Cricket World Cup 2026 following impressive performances in the recent Asia and Africa qualifiers respectively.

Japan, Afghanistan and Tanzania join Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Ireland, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and the West Indies, all of whom qualified based on their positions in the previous U19 World Cup.

Apart from these 12 sides, Zimbabwe have also made it into the tournament by the virtue of being a full-member co-host.

A jubilant Tanzania after their win in the Africa Qualifier

Two slots still need to be filled for the 16-team event, with regional qualifiers to be played to determine teams from the Americas region and Europe.

Tanzania had a remarkable unbeaten run in the Division 1 of the Africa U19 Qualifier, defeating the likes of Kenya and Namibia.

Afghanistan reigned supreme in the Asia Division 1 on the back of three wins and a no-result from their four games. While they tied on points along with Nepal, they qualified based on a superior net run-rate.

The Afghanistan U19 side after qualifying for the main event

In 2020, Japan were pooled alongside India, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka in the group stage. They failed to secure a win, but secured a point based on a no-result against the Black Caps. They also featured in the 15th-place play-off against Nigeria but lost the contest.

This will be Tanzania's first-ever appearance in the ICC Men's U19 Cricket World Cup, while Afghanistan featured in thrilling contests against New Zealand, Nepal, and the USA but failed to go beyond the group stage in the previous edition in 2024 in South Africa.

TEAMS QUALIFIED SO FAR

Australia

Afghanistan

Bangladesh

England

India

Ireland

Japan

Pakistan

New Zealand

Sri Lanka

South Africa

Tanzania

West Indies

Lead image credit: @CricketJapan via X