India's Mixed Results at Asian Games 2026: Soft Tennis and Shooting Highlights
Mixed Doubles Exit for Indian Soft Tennis Pair
The Indian mixed doubles team of Aadhya Tiwari and Jay Meena faced elimination in the round of 16 during the soft tennis event at the Asian Games 2026, held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, on Monday. They competed against the Filipino duo of Christy Sanosa and Sherwin Nuguit, ultimately losing with a score of 2-5, which included set scores of 4-2, 2-4, 2-4, 3-5, 2-4, 5-3, and 6-8. Aadhya and Jay had a strong start, defeating Cambodia's Viva Chao and Chanroseka Khun 5-0, with set scores of 4-1, 4-0, 4-2, 4-1, and 4-2. They followed this with another 5-0 victory over Mongolia's Bud Nyamdorj and Enkhkhuslen Ganbaatar, with set scores of 4-2, 4-1, 4-1, 4-0, and 5-3. However, they concluded their group stage with a loss to South Korea, finishing second in their group to advance to the knockout stage.
Shooting Success: Silver and Bronze for Indian Shooters
In the men's 10m air rifle individual event, Indian shooters Himanshu Dhillon and Rudrankksh Patil secured silver and bronze medals, respectively, while China's Sheng Lihao took home the gold in a tightly contested final on Monday. Rudrankksh began the event with a strong performance, leading after the first series with a score of 52.8, and further extending his lead with a 53.2 in the second series. Himanshu also remained competitive, briefly taking second place as the competition heated up. After 12 shots, Rudrankksh was in the lead with 127.4, followed closely by Himanshu at 126.6 and Sheng at 126.3. The competition remained intense, with Sheng eventually taking the lead after 16 shots. Himanshu made a remarkable comeback with a 10.9 but fell to third after a 9.8 shot. In the final showdown, both shooters scored 10.6, but Sheng's total of 233.0 secured him the gold, while Himanshu's 231.0 earned him silver.
India's Diverse Performance at Asian Games 2026
India's participation at the Asian Games 2026 has been a mix of achievements across various sports disciplines. In soft tennis, Aadhya Tiwari and Jay Meena kicked off their Group B campaign with a decisive 5-0 victory over Cambodia's Viva Chao and Chanroseka Khun. They also triumphed over Mongolia's Bud Nyamdorj and Enkhkhuslen Ganbaatar, but suffered a setback against South Korea, finishing second in their group to progress to the round of 16.
In the men's 10m air rifle team event, the Indian trio of Rudrankksh Patil, Parth Mane, and Himanshu Dhillon secured a silver medal with a total score of 1890.1, just behind China's 1899.0. South Korea claimed the bronze with 1841.4. This marked India's third medal in shooting at the Games, all of which have been silver.
In swimming, Srihari Nataraj advanced to the men's 50m backstroke final, while Rishabh Das was named as a reserve. Unfortunately, Mani Akash and Gitesh Shah did not qualify for the men's 50m freestyle final, and Dhanush Suresh missed out on the men's 100m breaststroke final. In wushu, Nyeman Wangsu finished 15th in the women's Changquan final. Additionally, in table tennis, India achieved a 3-0 victory over Pakistan in the women's team Group F match.