India defend 32 against associates Japan in rain-shortened T20I

[p]The historic match celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations took place at [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/japan/ULnTVF9B/"]Japan[/a]'s modest Sano International Cricket Ground.[/p][p]It was Japan's first T20 game against a full-member nation.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/india/fcOzl2uI/"]India[/a], who retained their T20 World Cup crown at home earlier this year, opted to bat first after rain and wet outfield delayed the start and forced a five-overs-a-side contest.[/p][p]India struggled to score on a sluggish pitch as they made 32-4.[/p][p]Japan -- ranked 41st by the International Cricket Council (ICC) -- pushed their more illustrious opponents all the way as they threatened a massive shock.[/p][p]They were in the game until the last ball but finished on 30-3, falling agonisingly just short.[/p][embed guid="3879062a-505e-4f63-8018-2ae6049884e7" url="https://x.com/BCCI/status/2102314990028149008" social-type="twitter" /][p]Japan's 17-year-old spinner Charlie Hara-Hinze stood out with figures of 2-17 in his two overs after he opened the attack and sent back opener Abhishek Sharma for a golden duck.[/p][p]Japan skipper Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming attempted to pull off the chase in his run-a-ball 12, but India's experienced spinners saved the heavyweights from embarrassment.[/p][p]The build-up to what should have been a mismatch was affected by Typhoon Dujuan, with heavy rain in Sano forcing training to be cancelled on Monday.[/p][p]The venue, which is also used for baseball and has a capacity of around 2,000 spectators, was dominated by India fans who had been expecting a rout.[/p][p]Japan will play the opening match of men's T20 cricket at the Asian Games against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/afghanistan/fPvTErSo/"]Afghanistan[/a] on Thursday at Korogi Sports Park, a converted baseball field.[/p]