Veteran P.V. Sindhu and young Unnati Hooda produced clutch performances to storm into the women’s singles quarterfinals, while Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty were knocked out of the Asian Games.
Couldn’t believe I had won a medal, says Baranica
India had won a bronze in the men’s canoe double 1000m at the Hangzhou Asian Games, with Arjun Singh and Sunil Singh finishing third. Having lost in the wushu trials for the quadrennial event, the two-time medallist had come to terms with missing out on a third foray. The Indian squad comprises Adnan Mohammed Badshah, Rudra Narayan Nayak, Deepkumar Vipulbhai Patel, Sai Krishna Nalluri, Dipjyoti Laxman Nath and Reuben Godfrey Fernandes. The win over Japan was their fourth consecutive in the event, continuing an unbeaten run. It was India’s overall ninth gold medal in kabaddi at the Asian Games. “I’m really happy. Like the women, the men face Iran in a high-stakes battle for the top spot. World No. After losing the opening two games, Anahat fought back brilliantly to win the next three in a row and complete a remarkable turnaround. The victory sends Anahat into the final, where she will battle for the gold medal. Elavenil returned home to a rousing welcome at Delhi’s IGI Airport along with seven other medal-winning members of the Indian shooting contingent late last night. “I feel very grateful that I got to represent my country and was able to bring a lot of laurels for the country. Less than a fortnight ago, Naorem Roshibina Devi was preparing to watch the Asian Games on television.
In a late evening third-round encounter, Sindhu outclassed Tomoka Miyazaki 21-9 21-13 in straight games to enter the quarterfinals. In women’s singles, Unnati, a winner of three BWF Super 100 titles, defeated Malaysia’s Ling Ching Wong 21-14 20-22 21-19 to progress to the third round. The 19-year-old from Haryana then recorded a stunning 21-19, 21-13 win over world No. 6 Indonesian Putri Kusuma Wardani to set up a quarterfinal clash with Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi. – PTI India’s Prachi Choudhary won a bronze medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian Games. Prachi bagged third place with a timing of 53.21 seconds. Salwa Naser of Bahrain won the gold with a Games record of 49.20s, while the silver went to Iran’s Zahra Zarei Manoujan, who clocked 52.38s. The other Indian in the line-up, Kiran Pahal, finished fifth with a timing of 53.41s. – PTI India’s Tajinderpal Singh Toor won a silver medal in men’s shot put at the Asian Games, his third medal at the Continental showpiece. Toor, who won a gold medal in the last two editions of the Games, bagged the silver, hurling the iron ball to 20.64 m. India also lost 1-2 to Hong Kong in the group stage of the last selection of the Pokemon UNITE esports event. India had suffered a 0-2 loss to South Korea in their opening Group C fixture on Friday. – PTI India will have two riders in the individual dressage final after Jai Sud and Hriday Vipul Chheda made the cut from today’s qualification round, while Shruti Vora and Gaurav Pundhir missed out at the Asian Games. Aboard Dono Di Maggio, Chheda was 11th with 135.059, while riding Goofy La Perle, Sud finished 13th in the combined standings with a score of 133.559 in the second individual qualifier. The top 15 combinations after the second qualifier advanced to the individual final, with a maximum of two riders allowed from each country. Vora, riding Magnanimous, had entered the second qualifier as India’s highest-ranked rider after finishing ninth in the opening round with 68.059%. However, her score dropped to 62% in the second qualifier, leaving her outside the top 15. Pundhir too was eliminated and could not make the individual final. -PTI Defending champions India advanced to the semifinals of the Asian Games men’s hockey competition after defeating hosts Japan 2-0 in a hard-fought pool A contest today. India had earlier thrashed Indonesia 13-1, Sri Lanka 16-1 and South Korea 8-2 in their opening three pool matches. India will take on Bangladesh in their final pool match on September 28, which they are expected to win handsomely. The Indian men had won seven successive gold medals before their dominance was halted at the 2018 Jakarta Games, where Iran emerged champions and India finished fourth. India bounced back at the 2023 Hangzhou Games, reclaiming the title. Kurihara, believed to be the youngest competitor at the Games in Aichi-Nagoya, romped to victory in the eSports game Puyo Puyo Champions 10-2 after going 1-0 down in the final. Both Anahat and Abhay, who beat Pakistan’s Muhammad Irfan 3-0 in the men’s singles semifinals, are just one match away from booking a spot in the 2028 Olympics. Both the men’s and women’s singles gold medallists in the Asian Games will get a direct qualification to the 2028 Games. The 18-year-old Anahat registered the biggest win of her career as she rallied from 0-2 deficit to beat world number six Satomi 3-2 in a thrilling semifinal match that lasted 51 minutes at Nagoya Kinjo-Futo Arena. Playing in his second Asian Games, Anahat won 9-11 11-13 12-10 11-6 11-3, exacting sweet revenge for her 2-3 loss to the same player in another five-game thriller. -PTI The men’s kabaddi final is underway at the Asian Games, with India taking on Iran in the gold-medal clash. After the women’s team clinched gold earlier, the men will now look to repeat the feat and defend the title they won at the 2022 Hangzhou Games. Indian debutant Paritosh’s campaign in the Puyo Puyo Champions esports event at the Asian Games ended in the quarterfinals after he suffered a 0-5 loss to South Korea’s Kang Dongshin on Saturday (September 26, 2026). Paritosh could not win a single period as Kang completed a comfortable 5-0 victory to advance to the semifinals at Aichi Sky Expo Hall D. Paritosh had secured his place in the quarterfinals after finishing third in Group B with two wins and two losses on Thursday (September 24). 11 Sindhu, who won her maiden Super 750 title at Japan a few months back, saw off Chinese Taipei’s world no. 17 Chiu Pin-chian 21-19 21-14 in the women’s singles second round. Sindhu, who had received a bye in the opening round, will face Japan’s Tomoka Miyazaki next. – PTI Abhay Singh has sealed a 3-0 win over Pakistan’s Muhammad Irfan in the men’s singles squash semifinal, clinching the final game 11-6. The Indian had won the opening two games 11-3, 12-10 to complete a dominant straight-games victory and book his place in the gold-medal match. India’s campaign this time ended without a podium finish, with the paddlers competing across the kayak and canoe events. – PTI But Jadumani, competing in the men’s 55kg category, lost 0-3 to Philippines’ Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Carlo Paalam. – PTI India’s 18-year-old squash prodigy Anahat Singh staged a stunning comeback to defeat Japan’s Satomi Watanabe 3-2 in the women’s singles semifinal at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26, 2026). HTHjJ6fbEAAEAK7.jpg Manush went down 0-4 (4-11, 4-11, 9-11, 10-12) to Chinese world No. 8 Lin Shidong, while Ghorpade lost 1-4 (5-11, 11-4, 4-11, 5-11) to Japan’s Miwa Harimoto in the women’s singles third round. Indian paddlers thus finished their Asian Games campaign with one medal — the mixed doubles bronze clinched by Manush and Diya Chitale on Friday (September 25). The Indian men’s team comprising Gisho Nidhi Kumaresan Padma, Karan Singh and Lakshay Badser notched up a 45-27 win over the Philippines in the pre-quarterfinals at Aichi Sky Expo Hall F. However, they lost 25-45 to Korea in the last eight. In the women’s foil event, the team comprising Joys Ashitha Stalinraj, Sonia Devi Waikhom, Kanupriya Chawla and Mina Devi Naorem suffered a 14-45 loss to Japan in the quarterfinals. India had defeated Indonesia 45-24 in the round of 16. – PTI India’s Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar settled for the bronze medal after suffering a heartbreaking defeat to Hong Kong’s Tang Ming Hong and Lee Ka Yi in the semifinals of the mixed doubles squash competition at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26). The duo of Joshna and Senthilkumar lost (2-1) 11-10 2-11 11-10 after an intense three gamer at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena. It is the sixth Asian Games medal for 40-year-old Joshna. She already has a haul of two silver and three bronze medals at the continental event. – PTI His score bettered the previous Asian Games qualification record of 690 by Korean Lee Woo Seok, who slipped to fourth position with 687 points. – PTI Nagoya: India’s Joshana Chinappa, left, competes in the mixed doubles semifinal Squash match against Hong Kong’s Lee Ka Yi and Tang Ming Hong in the ongoing Asian Games 2026, in Nagoya, Japan, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. (PTI Photo/Arun Sharma)(PTI09_26_2026_000016A) The Indian trio of Tilottama Sen, Vidarsa Vinod and Ashi Chouksey won the silver medal in women’s 50m rifle 3 positions team event at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26, 2026), with the first two shooters also making the individual final. His silver is the first medal for India in the Asian Games after the bronze won by Hosur Kukkappa Seetharan in the 1982 edition in New Delhi. – PTI Elite rifle shooter Elavenil Valarivan said beating reigning Olympic and world champion Ban Hyojin of South Korea for an individual silver at the Asian Games has helped her overcome the disappointment of narrowly missing out on gold after leading until the final stages of the women’s 10m air rifle competition in Nagoya. Definitely, there is some disappointment that I could not win the gold, but nevertheless, this is just the beginning and I think there is more to come,” Elavenil told PTI after being accorded a thunderous welcome at the airport. – PTI Couldn’t believe I had won a medal, says Baranica Asian Games 2026: Gulveer wins silver, Baranica makes history with pole vault bronze, Manpreet also medals for India.
Sud and Chheda therefore secured both of India’s available berths.
Eel-loving schoolboy Yuki Kurihara, 11, won an Asian Games gold medal in Japan today, more weightlifting world records were set and organisers admitted they were “not satisfied” with ticket sales after swathes of unsold seats were seen at the athletics. “To be completely honest, I felt a bit embarrassed, so I couldn’t really show my expressions or change my face much,” said Kurihara after blowing away a series of opponents, some three times his age. Kurihara, who says he eats eel to prepare for contests, bowed slightly as he received his gold medal and gave a small wave.
The gold medal is really beautiful, shiny and heavy,” he said. -AFP Indian teen sensation Anahat Singh made a stunning turnaround after losing the first two games to humble Japan’s higher-ranked Satomi Watanabe and stormed into women’s singles final of the Asian Games squash event, while Abhay Singh also made it to the final in men’s section today.
Against Japan, Abhishek (15th minute) scored from a field effort while skipper Harmanpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 40th minute. Naorem Roshibina Devi wins silver in wushu at the Asian Games, marking her third consecutive medal despite last-minute team inclusion. Leading the charge will be Dhiraj Bommadevara, who arrives in Japan fresh from a landmark World Cup Final triumph in Saltillo last week, becoming the first Indian male recurve archer to win the season-ending title. Suruchi Phogat and Kamaljeet combined to not only win the 10m air pistol mixed team event but also set a new Asian Games record in the process.
Iran’s Mohammadreza Tayebise broke the Games record and took home the gold with a throw of 20.81, breaking Toor’s 20.75 m set in 2018. Mohammed Tolu of Saudi Arabia bagged the bronze with an effort of 20.48m. – PTI Indian debutant Paritosh’s campaign in the Puyo Puyo Champions esports event at the Asian Games ended in the quarterfinals after he suffered a 0-5 loss to South Korea’s Kang Dongshin. The 28-year-old Armyman from Himachal Pradesh clocked 2 hour, 11 minute and 37 seconds to complete the distance of 42.195km and finish behind Japan’s Ichitaka Yamashita (2:10:49). China’s Peiyou Feng was third with 2:12:13. The 25-year-old’s breakthrough comes after a strong run that also included his maiden World Cup gold in Antalya and the 2025 Asian Archery Championships title. – PTI India’s wait for a shooting gold from the Aichi General Shooting Range finally ended on the sixth day of the competition.
It was a pulsating first two quarters where Japan matched India stick-for-stick with their aggressive play, but the defending champions went into the breather with a slender one-goal lead. -PTI India completed a golden double in kabaddi at the Asian Games as both the men’s and women’s teams defended their respective titles with thrilling victories over Iran in the finals today. India’s archers will begin their Asian Games campaign with a blend of proven form, youthful promise and a clear target to better their nine-medal haul from Hangzhou, when competition gets underway at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square, here on Saturday.
The Indian men overcame Iran 40-34 in a closely fought final to retain their gold medal, following the women’s team’s 37-34 victory over the same opponents earlier in the day. The men’s final was a tense affair, with the scores tied at 20-20 at one stage before India managed to gain the upper hand and secure another gold. That faith was rewarded as India held off a spirited Iran 37-34 to win a record-extending fourth women’s kabaddi gold at the Asian Games, adding another chapter to their dominance since the sport’s introduction at the 2010 Guangzhou Games. Our federation has supported us so much,” she said. -PTI Asian Games – Aichi-Nagoya 2026 – Fencing – Men’s Team Sabre – Semi Final – Kazakhstan v Japan – Aichi International Exhibition Center, Tokoname, Japan – September 26, 2026Japan’s Hayato Tsubo in action during his match against Kazakhstan’s Artyom Sarkissyan REUTERS/Edgar Su Iran’s women’s kabaddi team changed camps three times, trained at roughly 10 different bases over six months, and relied on a psychologist to keep their young players focused as regional conflict disrupted Asian Games preparations, coach Ghulam Raza Mazandrani said on Saturday (September 26). Sindhu and young shuttler Ayush Shetty notched up straight-game wins to progress to the singles prequarterfinals but Lakshya Sen suffered a second-round exit at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26). Indian boxer Kapil Pokhariya delivered a superb performance to advance to the quarterfinals but it was curtains for compatriot Jadumani Singh at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26). Kapil, the boxer from Uttarakhand, registered a 5-0 win over Iran’s Sam Estaki in the men’s 90kg category to enter the last eight. The Indian women’s kabaddi team holds a 22-16 lead over fierce rivals Iran at half-time in the Asian Games 2026 gold-medal clash. India made a strong start to the high-stakes final, building a six-point cushion as they look to finish their campaign with a third gold medal at the Games in Japan. ndia’s campaign in the men’s sabre and women’s foil team events ended at the quarterfinal stage after losses to Korea and Japan, respectively, at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26). The Indian team aggregated 1763 to finish second on the podium. China claimed the gold medal with a games record 1773, while Kazakhstan settled for the bronze with 1754 following a gruelling contest. In the individual section, both Ashi and Tilottama placed themselves in the top three with scores of 395-25x and 395-23x ahead of standing, respectively. – PTI Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen suffered a second-round exit at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, losing to former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in three games here on Saturday (September 26, 2026). 14 Sen went down 12-21 21-15 14-21 to the 2021 world champion, ranked 13th, in a battle lasting more than an hour at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium. – PTI Indian shooter Sonam Maskar expressed happiness after winning the silver medal in the women’s 10m air rifle team event at the Asian Games 2026, saying the support and joy of the people motivated the team to perform better. India’s medal-winning shooting contingent from the Asian Games received a warm welcome at the New Delhi airport on Friday night.- ANI awan Barwal ran a stunning marathon race to hand India an unexpected silver in the Asian Games, shattering his own national record in the process on Saturday (September 26). Kamaljeet and Suruchi win gold for India in the 10m air pistol mixed team at the Asian Games, posting 484.6 in Nagoya.
Because every time the Indian team has played, it has always brought gold. So that pressure is always there,” she said. Indian women’s kabaddi captain Pushpa Rana firmly believed in her raiding unit’s ability to turn the tide, maintaining complete composure even as Iran’s aggressive gameplay temporarily dismantled her team’s defence during their high-stakes gold medal match. “Our raiders are outstanding. So, our main aim was that even if our defenders are going out, our raiders are a strong point. The captain acknowledged that the expectation of gold had brought its own pressure, particularly for an Indian team accustomed to ruling the continental competition. “Yes, silver is less than gold. “There was confidence from the whole country that we would bring gold. All the players had that hope. We were able to apply the practice that we had been working hard on. Our coaches have supported us so much. The upheaval meant the players were preparing for one of the biggest tournaments of their careers while worrying about the safety of their families and dealing with uncertainty over where they would train next — and how they would get home after the Games. India concluded their canoeing campaign at the Asian Games without a medal at the Miyoshi Lake, failing to match their bronze-medal performance from the Hangzhou edition. The World No.
They will always come good,” Rana said after the victory. “We had a psychologist and she helped us very good and kept them in the right frame of mind because of the war,” Mazandarani said after Iran pushed India hard before losing 37-34 in the women’s kabaddi final. – PTI Two-time Olympic medallist P.V.
Indian table tennis players Manush Shah and Yashaswini Ghorpade suffered defeats in their respective men’s and women’s singles pre-quarterfinals to end their campaign at the Asian Games on Saturday (September 26). Fresh from his World Cup Final triumph, Dhiraj Bommadevara made a strong start to his Asian Games campaign, smashing the men’s recurve qualification record with 698 points to top the standings on Saturday (September 26). He shot 348 in his first 36 arrows and then dropped just 10 points in the final 36, adding 350 to finish on 698 out of a possible 720.
Dhiraj, currently ranked fourth in the world, produced a superb second half to move clear at the top.