The four-time champions are in Group C with Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Australia.
"Our target is to win," Kensuke said at a pre-match press conference on Tuesday. "We've prepared well for the match against Australia because it's the most important match of the group stage, so we want a good result."
Japan is the second most successful team in the tournament, but suffered a bitter defeat in the 2024 edition, two years after winning the 2022 edition. Two years ago, they failed to advance beyond the group stage in Thailand.
At that time, Japan won only one of three matches to finish third with four points. This failure prevented Japan from qualifying for the Futsal World Cup that same year, which was held in Uzbekistan.
"This squad was formed right after the last Asian Cup (2024). Some players have experience from previous tournaments, but others don't," said Kensuke, a coach who previously managed the Indonesian national futsal team.
