Aichi-Nagoya: Suchika Tariyal created history by becoming India’s first Asian Games medallist in mixed martial arts, winning bronze in the women’s traditional -60kg division. Meanwhile, shooting once again led India’s medal charge, as Himanshu Dhillon, Rudrankksh Patil and Parth Mane combined to win silver in the men’s 10m air rifle team event. Himanshu Dhillon and Rudrankksh Patil also successfully registered a double podium finish in the individual final, claiming silver and bronze respectively, as India added four more medals to its tally on a productive and promising Day 2 of the Asian Games 2026 on Monday, September 21, in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
India’s medal tally has now risen to six, including four silver and two bronze, after two eventful and highly competitive days. Suchika Tariyal’s historic bronze came after heartbreak, as a closely fought semifinal ended in a draw. Her higher weight ultimately denied her a place in the final. Shooting once again proved to be one of India’s biggest sources of medals, with the sport producing three medals on the day. Meanwhile, in hockey, the Indian women’s team continued their dominant run with a thumping 17-1 rout of Indonesia. In kabaddi, India began their campaign strongly as the defending champions, with the men’s team defeating Japan 49-24 and the women’s team registering a commanding 42-21 victory over Bangladesh. India’s badminton team also made a strong start, sweeping Bangladesh 3-0 in their opening-round tie. In table tennis, India produced another commanding performance, with both the men’s and women’s teams dominating Pakistan 3-0 in their respective group ties. In wushu, Roshibina Devi defeated Bangladesh’s Shika Khatun in the women’s 60kg sanda event to advance to the quarter-finals, while Nyeman Wangsu finished 15th in the women’s changquan final. Aryan defeated Afghanistan’s Safi Shahzada 2-0 in the men’s 56kg sanda event to book his place in the quarter-finals. In soft tennis, Aadhya Tiwari and Jay Meena began their campaign with a 5-0 win over Cambodia before registering another convincing 5-0 victory over Mongolia. However, they later suffered a 5-1 defeat to South Korea. In sepaktakraw, India went down 2-1 to Japan, while swimming endured a difficult day for the Indian contingent. In boxing, Sumit Kundu advanced to the men’s 70kg Round of 16.
Wushu
India’s Nyeman Wangsu finished 15th in the women’s changquan final, scoring 9.573 in a competitive 16-athlete field. Hui Yu Lydia Sham of Hong Kong claimed the gold medal with a score of 9.713, while Cho Man Sou of Macau took silver with 9.710. Indonesia’s Eugenia Diva Widodo completed the podium with bronze after scoring 9.706.
Two-time Asian Games medallist Roshibina Devi defeated Bangladesh’s Shika Khatun by Wushu Points Difference (WPD) to book her place in the women’s 60kg sanda quarter-finals. Roshibina, who won bronze at Jakarta 2018 and silver at Hangzhou 2023 in the 60kg sanda category, is now just one victory away from securing another Asian Games medal. Meanwhile, two-time junior world champion Aryan produced a convincing 2-0 (5-0, 5-0) victory over Afghanistan’s Safi Shahzada to advance to the men’s 56kg sanda quarter-finals, scheduled for tomorrow.
Soft Tennis
Aadhya Tiwari and Jay Meena made a strong start to their campaign with a convincing 5-0 victory over Cambodia’s Viva Chao and Chhanroseka Khun, winning the sets 4-1, 4-0, 4-2, 4-1 and 4-2. They continued their impressive run with another commanding 5-0 win over Mongolia’s Bud Nyamdoroj and Enkhuslen Ganbaatar, taking the sets 4-2, 4-1, 4-1, 4-0 and 5-3. However, their winning run came to an end with a 5-1 defeat to South Korea in their final group-stage match. Despite the setback, Tiwari and Meena advanced to the Round of 16, bringing their promising campaign at the Games to a close.
Sepak Takraw
India’s men’s regu team went down 2-1 to Japan in their Group B contest after a closely fought battle against the hosts. Japan bounced back strongly after losing the opening fixture, winning the second match 2-1 (15-12, 15-17, 15-11) before sealing the tie with a 2-0 (15-9, 15-12) victory in the decisive third fixture. India will now look to bounce back when they face Malaysia in their second group-stage match on Tuesday.
Shooting
India clinched the silver medal in the men’s 10m air rifle team event after the trio of Rudrankksh Patil (631.8), Himanshu Dhillon (630.0) and Parth Mane (628.3) combined for an impressive 1890.1 points. The People’s Republic of China claimed the gold with a world-record score of 1899 points, setting a new mark and improving the previous record of 1898.4 set in Cairo last year. South Korea took the bronze with 1884.2 points.
Himanshu Dhillon secured silver with 252.4 points, while Rudrankksh Patil claimed bronze with 230.9 points in the men’s 10m air rifle individual event, as the Indian duo delivered a successful double podium finish. It marked the first time two Indian shooters finished on the podium in the same event at the Asian Games 2026. Olympic champion Sheng Liao of China won gold with an Asian record of 254.2 points. With three medals from shooting on the day, India’s shooting tally rose to five, comprising four silver and one bronze.
Swimming
India endured a difficult day in swimming as Olympian Srihari Nataraj finished 10th in the men’s 50m backstroke final. Nataraj qualified for the final after clocking 25.37 seconds, matching the time of Iran’s Homer Abbasi. He finished third in his heat and joint ninth overall before clocking 25.52 seconds in the final.
China’s Jiayu Xu claimed the gold medal and set a new Asian record with a time of 24.04 seconds, breaking the previous mark of 24.28 seconds set by Japan’s Junya Koga at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.
In the men’s 50m freestyle, Aksh Mani clocked a personal best of 23.43 seconds, while Geetesh Shah finished 28th overall with a time of 23.57 seconds and could not progress beyond the heats. Danush Suresh also missed out on a place in the men’s 100m backstroke final after finishing eighth in his heat and 22nd overall in 1:03.46.
In the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay, Sanjana Parkash, Dhakshan Shashikumar, Vedaant Madhavan and Aneesh Sunil could not qualify for the final. Vedaant Madhavan will compete in two more events — the 200m freestyle on September 23 and the 200m backstroke on September 25.
Boxing
Sumit Kundu made a strong start to India’s boxing campaign with a dominant 5-0 victory over Thailand’s Olympian and Asian medallist Sinsiri Bunjong in the men’s 70kg event. Kundu controlled the bout from the opening bell, dictating the action with confidence and composure to secure a convincing victory and book his place in the next round.
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)
Suchika Tariyal created history by becoming the first Indian to win an Asian Games medal in mixed martial arts. However, her landmark achievement was followed by heartbreak in the semifinal against Singapore’s Hui Hoon Teo in the women’s traditional 60kg category. The closely fought contest ended in a draw, but MMA rules allow the lighter fighter to advance when a bout finishes level. Suchika was around 700 grams heavier than Hui Hoon Teo, which ultimately denied her a place in the final and ended her hopes of fighting for gold. Despite the heartbreak, her bronze medal marks a landmark achievement for India. Suchika, a 2024 world champion in jiu-jitsu, has also represented India in judo at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and in kurash at the 2022 Asian Games.
Hockey
India continued their dominant run in women’s hockey with a thumping 17-1 victory over Indonesia in their second Pool B match. The emphatic win took India’s goal tally to 36 across their opening two matches, underlining their attacking strength. Forwards Deepika, Sherawat, Rutuja Dadaso Pisal and Navneet Kaur each struck hat-tricks as India powered to back-to-back victories and maintained their strong start to the campaign.
The match was also a landmark occasion for Savita Punia, who earned her 321st senior international cap to become the most-capped player in Indian women’s hockey history. The former India captain moved past Vandana Katariya, who previously held the record with 320 appearances. Savita’s milestone adds another significant chapter to a distinguished career that has seen her represent India at multiple major international tournaments.
India will next face Thailand in their third Pool B match on Wednesday as they aim to maintain their winning run at the Asian Games.
Kabaddi
The defending champions in kabaddi made a strong start to their campaign, with both Indian teams registering commanding victories on the opening day.
The men’s team produced a dominant performance to defeat Japan 49-24 in Group A. India will now face South Korea in their second group-stage match on Tuesday as they look to build on their winning start. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semifinals.
The Indian women’s team also delivered a commanding display against Bangladesh, taking a strong 21-10 lead before completing a convincing 42-21 victory.
Table Tennis
India completed a 3-0 win over Pakistan, with Payas Jain defeating Muhammad Khan 3-0 (11-2, 11-5, 11-7) in their final Group F tie.
India also produced a commanding 3-0 victory over Pakistan in the women’s team event to seal their place in the quarter-finals, topping Group F with three wins from three matches. Sutirtha Mukherjee beat Aleena Khan 3-0 (11-3, 11-3, 11-4), before Asian Games debutant Syndrela Das defeated Kalsoom Khan 3-0 (11-6, 11-7, 11-5). Sreeja Akula then completed the sweep with another 3-0 (11-4, 11-4, 11-5) victory over Fatima Khan.
Badminton
India produced a commanding display against Bangladesh, securing a 3-0 victory without dropping a single game across the three matches to book their place in the men’s team quarter-finals. Lakshya Sen got India off to a strong start with a 21-4, 21-12 victory over Jaman Ayman Ibn, before Ayush Shetty followed with a 21-4, 21-13 win over Gourab Singha. Kidambi Srikanth then completed the sweep, defeating Jumar Al-Amin 21-15, 21-9 to seal India’s 3-0 victory. India will face hosts Japan in the quarter-finals tomorrow, with a win in the tie guaranteeing the team a medal.
India enjoyed a productive and promising day, adding four more medals to their tally and ending Day 2 on a positive note. The focus now shifts to an action-packed Tuesday, with the Indian women’s cricket team set to face Sri Lanka in the gold-medal match as they look to defend their title.
