India vs Japan T20I Highlights: Shreyas Iyer's men pull off a thrilling 2-run win in rain-truncated encounter in Sano

Axar Patel to bowl the final six balls. After a single run in the first two balls, Axar bowls back-to-back wides. Can India pull this through? Japn need 4 off the last ball. Axar has done it. India win the game by 2 runs as Japan manage 30/3 in five overs.

Washington Sundar bowls the fourth over. India certainly need a wicket in this over. If not a wicket, the Indians should not concede any boundary. DROPPEDD!!! Tilak Varma puts down Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming at mid-off. OUTTT!!! Kadowaki-Fleming, te dangerman is out in the final ball of the over, caught by Yash Thakur. He departs for 12. Japan need 8 runs in the last over. JPN 25/3 (4)

India have kept things in check for Japan in the chae. After the first two overs, Ravi Bishnoi concedes 10 runs in the third as the hosts need 17 runs in the last two overs. JPN 18/2 (3)

OUTTTT!!!! Second wicket India and first for Washington Sundar. Ibrahim Takahashi gets a four off the previous ball and holes out to Ravi Bishnoi in the next. JPN 7/2 (1.4)

Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming and Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake walk out for Japan in the chase. Axar Patel will open the attack for India. OUTTT!!! India have got the first wicket and its Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake. He is run out by Ishan Kishan. JPN 2/1 (1)

The Indian team should also approach the second innings with spin from the first over itself. It's a slow track and an edge off the pacer can certainly hurt the Indian team. Can India pull off a win?

Dropped & 4! Shreyas Iyer survives off Charlie Hara-Hinze before getting a boundary in the next ball. Incidentally, this is the second boundary by India in the game. OUTTT!!! Iyer is caught by Ibrahim Takahashi in the next ball as the captain departs for 16. India finish at 32/4 in five overs. Japan need 33 runs to win the historic game.

Ibrahim Takahashi comes into attack in the fourth over. Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma are in the middle, but they are yet to break the shackles. With boundaries not coming, the duo have made sure to keep the scoreboard ticking with singles and doubles. IND 22/3 (4)

This is certainly not a good sight if you are an Indian cricket fan. The match is in its third over and only a single delivery has been struck so far, that too from Sanju Samson. Benjamin Ito-Davis is in the attack. OUTTTT!!!! Ishan Kishan is caught by Makoto Taniyama for just three runs. IND 14-3 (2.4)

OUTTT!!!! India in backfoot at the start. After Ahishek Sharma departed in the last delivery of the first over, Sanju Samson follows suit two balls later off Ibrahim Takahashi. Samson is caught by Benjamin Ito-Davis. IND 9/2 (1.2)

Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson walk out to bat for India. It's going to be a spinner for Japan to start with. Charlie Hara-Hinze opens the attack for Japan. Just a single boundary from Sanju Samson to start the innings with in the first over. OUTTT!!! What a start by Hara-Hinze and Japan as Abhishek is caught by Shoma Sugaya-Slater on the final ball. The whole Japan team iss off to a celebratory run. IND 5/1 (1)

Time for National Anthems. The players of both sides are making their way into the middle. Each player has a little mascot accompanying them.

Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming: We probably would have bowled. I was happy either way. It is pure excitement, it is starting to sink now and hopefully we can put on a show. There is quite a few Indian supporters here. We are extremely grateful to everyone who has made this game happen. It is amazing, reining world champions coming here, we wouldn't have believed it a few years ago.

Shreyas Iyer: We are going to bat first. It is a big occasion, it is going to be an exciting one and we want to explore the conditions. It is going to be a 5-over side, so we want to bat first. I never envisioned that I will be coming to Japan and captaining India. It is important we know the conditions and what is happening around us. These are the pitches that will be offered at the Asian Games, so this game is important heading into that.

Good News! We are all set for the toss as it would be a five-over game. India captain Shreyas Iyer walks out for the toss. The game will start at 12:30 PM IST. India have won the toss and opt to bat first.

And the wait game continues. "Next inspection will be at 3:15 PM local time (11:45 AM IST)," post from BCCI on X.

The news coming from the ground is that the umpires are having a chat with the two captains. There are certainly some damp areas in the ground which might delay the game further. No super soppers or ground staff are there at the moment. The match referee is having a long discussion with the groundstaff and even went to have a chat with India head coach VVS Laxman.

Players of both India and Japan are in the middle warming up. While the Indian players are playing some footy, the hosts are throwing the ball around. The inspection is expected to happen soon. Meanwhile, clouds have started to gather once again.

Some mindboggling stats. Japan's Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming and Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake is the owner of the highest-ever partnership in T20I history. They put on an unbeaten 258 against China in Mong Kok in 2024 for the opening wicket.

Th waiting game continues in Sano. The first inspection has been completed with the second coming in an hour later at 2:15 PM local time (10:45 AM IST).