Badminton
Indian men storm into semis with 3-0 win over Japan, women’s hopes end with loss to Japan
It turned out to be a mixed day for the Indian shuttlers at the 20th Asian Games 2026. The Indian men assured themselves of a medal after beating hosts Japan 3-0 in the quarterfinals while the women saw their medal hopes end in a whimper after a 1-3 quarterfinal defeat to Japan.
Badminton history was repeated as the Indian men’s team secured a back-to-back podium finish, a feat accomplished after 40 long years. India men, silver medallists at Hangzhou 2023, reached the semifinals and consequently secured at least a bronze medal for the second successive Asian Games.
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Lakshya Sen, 14th in the badminton rankings, gave India the lead with a remarkable 11-21, 21-5, 21-19 victory against world No. 7 and 2026 BWF World Championships silver medallist Kodai Naraoka in the opening singles rubber at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Tuesday.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty added to India’s lead with a 21-18, 24-22 victory over 2021 world champions Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi. Pics: BAI
After losing the opening game, Lakshya stormed back to take the second before finding himself 19-13 down in the decider. The Indian player then reeled off eight consecutive points to put India 1-0 ahead.
Lakshya helps Indian shuttlers make a bright start to their Asian Games campaign
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, the reigning Asian Games men’s doubles champions, then added to India’s lead with a 21-18, 24-22 victory over 2021 world champions Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi. The Indians recovered from 11-7 down in the opening game and prevailed after a tense finish to the second, eventually converting their fourth match point.
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World No. 20 Ayush Shetty then completed the victory against 16th-ranked Koki Watanabe, winning 21-10, 21-19 to send India into the semifinals.
Treesa-Gayatri impresses for Indian women
Earlier in the day, the Indian women’s team saw its medal hopes end following a quarterfinal defeat to Japan.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu pushed three-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi to three games in the opening singles match before going down 23-21, 18-21, 11-21. Sindhu had recovered from 15-18 down to take a tight opening game but Yamaguchi fought back before taking control of the decider.
Teenager Unnati Hooda also held mid-game leads in both games against world No. 7 Tomoka Miyazaki but lost 21-16, 21-18 as Japan moved 2-0 ahead.
Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand kept India alive with the standout result of the women’s tie. They stunned world No. 3 pair Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto 21-16, 21-17
Facing elimination, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand kept India alive with the standout result of the women’s tie. The Indians, bronze medallists at last month’s BWF World Championships in New Delhi, stunned world No. 3 pair Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto 21-16, 21-17.
However, former world champion Nozomi Okuhara beat Tanvi Sharma 21-12, 21-10 in the fourth rubber to seal Japan’s place in the semifinals.
India’s wait for a second Asian Games women’s team badminton medal, therefore, continued. Their only medal in the event remains the bronze won at Incheon 2014. The Indian women had also exited in the quarterfinals at Hangzhou 2023 after losing 0-3 to Thailand.
The individual badminton competitions at the Asian Games 2026 begin on Friday, with the men’s and women’s singles and doubles events running from September 25 to 29.