Aichi-Nagoya [Japan], September 26 (ANI): Indian shuttler Unnati Hooda superior to the pre-quarterfinals of the ladies’s singles occasion after defeating Malaysia’s Wong Ling Ching in an exciting three-game contest on the Asian Games 2026 on Saturday.
Unnati registered a 2-1 (21-14, 20-22, 21-19) victory over Wong to seal her place within the subsequent spherical, the place she’s going to face Indonesia’s Putri Kusuma Wardani.
The Indian, ranked twenty fifth on the planet, began strongly and secured the opening sport 21-14. However, Wong, who’s ranked thirty eighth on the planet, fought again within the second sport and compelled a decider with a slender 22-20 win.
The second sport noticed a detailed battle, with Unnati holding a sizeable lead on the interval. However, the change of ends shifted the momentum as Wong took management and moved forward 17-16 earlier than closing out the sport to stage the match.
In the deciding sport, each gamers remained locked in a decent contest. Unnati stepped up underneath stress and earned two match factors at 20-18. Wong saved one alternative however despatched a cross-court shot huge on the following level, permitting the Indian to clinch the match with a 21-19 win. Unnati will now purpose to proceed her run when she takes on Putri Kusuma Wardani within the pre-quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, India opened the day with a powerful medal haul on the Asian Games 2026 as Sawan Barwal clinched silver within the males’s marathon with a nationwide report time of two:11:37. In capturing, Ashi Chouksey, Tilottama Sen and Vidarsa Vinod gained the workforce silver medal within the girls’s 50m rifle 3P occasion, whereas Tilottama (third with 590 factors) and Vidarsa (sixty fifth with 588 factors) certified for the ultimate.
In squash, Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar secured a bronze medal after shedding their combined doubles semifinal towards Hong Kong’s Tang Ming Hong and Lee Ka Yi.
Badminton noticed combined outcomes as Unnati Hooda superior to the ladies’s singles pre-quarterfinals after defeating Malaysia’s Wong Ling Ching, whereas Lakshya Sen bowed out after shedding to Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew within the males’s singles second spherical.
Indian archers delivered sturdy performances in qualification rounds. Chikitha Taniparthi, Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Prithika Pradeep completed second within the girls’s workforce compound qualification, whereas Dhiraj Bommadevara, Neeraj Chauhan and Yashdeep Bhoge secured third place in males’s workforce recurve qualification, with Dhiraj setting Asian and nationwide information.
In athletics, Tejaswin Shankar and Thowfeeq Noushad continued their decathlon marketing campaign, with Tejaswin main the lengthy bounce occasion and staying in medal competition. Animesh Kujur certified for the lads’s 200m semifinal after topping his warmth.
India additionally progressed in fencing, with the ladies’s foil workforce and males’s sabre workforce profitable their respective round-of-16 matches earlier than later exiting within the quarterfinals towards Japan and South Korea. In canoe dash, Parvathy Geetha and Prasanna Kumar reached Final A in combined kayak double 500m, whereas Harshwardhan Shaktawat superior to Final B.
Table tennis gamers Yashaswini Ghorpade and Manush Shah exited within the singles rounds, whereas esports participant Paritosh misplaced within the Puyo Puyo Champions quarterfinal. India additionally completed eighth within the combined canoe double 500m ultimate via Raju Rawat and Neha Devi Leichonbam. (ANI)