Pranati Nayak Advances to Vault Final as India Shines at Asian Games
Pranati Nayak Advances to Vault Final
India's representative in gymnastics at the 2026 Asian Games, Pranati Nayak, has successfully qualified for the women's individual vault final. She secured her spot by finishing seventh out of 19 competitors in the qualification round, achieving a total score of 12.916. The final event is set to take place on September 24.
Competing exclusively in the vault, which is India's strongest discipline in artistic gymnastics, Pranati demonstrated a solid performance across her two attempts. According to ESPN, she scored 13.000 on her first vault, with a difficulty rating of 4.4 and an execution score of 8.600. In her second attempt, she earned a score of 12.433, with a difficulty of 4.0 and an execution score of 8.433. A veteran Olympian from Tokyo, Pranati is also a three-time bronze medalist at the Asian Gymnastics Championships. She entered the Asian Games after clinching a silver medal in the women's vault at the FIG World Challenge Cup 2026 held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Cricket Gold Highlights a Successful Day for India
In other news, India's women's cricket team achieved a remarkable feat by winning their second consecutive gold medal at the Asian Games, triumphing over Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the T20 final. India set a formidable target of 216 runs for Sri Lanka, who were bowled out for just 69 runs in 15.4 overs.
Additionally, the men's badminton team secured a medal by defeating Japan 3-0 in the quarterfinals, while the women's team faced a setback, losing 3-1 to Japan in their quarterfinal match. In wushu, Roshibina Devi guaranteed a medal by overcoming Macao's Chu Man Sin in the women's 60kg quarterfinal. The men's kabaddi team also had a strong performance, winning 63-31 against South Korea in Group A. In boxing, Sakshi Chaudhary advanced by defeating Aira Villegas from the Philippines in the women's 51kg round of 32, while Jadumani Singh triumphed over Nepal's Chandra Bahadur Thapa in the men's 55kg round of 32.
Shooting Events
In shooting competitions, Elavenil Valarivan and Parth Mane finished fourth in the 10m air rifle mixed team final. Anantjeet Singh Naruka ranked second in the men's skeet qualification after the second day, while Mairaj Khan and Bhavtegh Singh Gill placed 23rd and 35th, respectively. In the women's events, Raiza Dhillon finished fifth, Parinaaz Dhaliwal ninth, and Maheshwari Chauhan sixteenth.
Table Tennis Results
The women's table tennis team from India achieved victory against Thailand with a score of 3-2 in the round of 16, while the men's team unfortunately lost 0-3 to the Republic of Korea in their opening match.
Swimming Highlights
In swimming, India placed eighth in the 4x100m medley relay final. Aryan Nehra finished fourth in the men's 1500m freestyle final B, and the men's 4x100m medley relay team, consisting of Rishabh Das, Akash Mani, Benediction Beniston, and Dhanush Suresh, qualified for the final after finishing seventh overall in the heats.
Medal Tally Update
As of now, China has become the first nation to surpass 50 medals at the Games, with a total of 31 gold, 13 silver, and eight bronze. India currently ranks eighth in the medal standings, having secured seven medals: one gold, four silver, and two bronze.