Nagoya [Japan], September 20 (ANI): The Indian men's table tennis team began their Asian Games 2026 campaign on a winning note after defeating Indonesia 3-0 in their opening group-stage encounter on Sunday.
Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah delivered victories in their respective matches to help India seal a comfortable win.
After Sathiyan's opening victory, Manav Thakkar faced a tough challenge against Muhammad Junindra. The Indian paddler eventually prevailed in a five-game thriller, winning 11-7, 8-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-9 to give India a 2-0 lead in the tie.
Manush Shah then stepped up to close out the contest for India, defeating Affan Pratama 11-9, 11-9, 12-10 in straight games.
With the 3-0 victory, India's men's table tennis team made a strong start to their Asian Games campaign.
Meanwhile, India opened their medal tally at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games with a silver medal in the women's 10m air rifle team event, as Elavenil Valarivan, Sonam Maskar and Vidarsa Vinod finished second.
In other events, Suchika Tariyal secured a medal in women's traditional 60kg MMA after defeating Mongolia's Altanchimeg Baigalmaa in the quarterfinal, while India's women's hockey team began their campaign with a dominant 19-0 win over Uzbekistan. The women's table tennis team also registered a 3-0 victory over Indonesia in their Group F match.
In Cricket, Indian women's team opener Smriti Mandhana etched her name in the record books by becoming the leading run-scorer in women's T20 International cricket during the Asian Games 2026 semi-final against Bangladesh on Sunday.
Mandhana surpassed New Zealand great Suzie Bates' tally of 4,758 runs in 186 matches to become the highest run-getter in women's T20Is. The Indian batter now has 4,765 runs in the format.
The milestone came during the second women's cricket semi-final between India and Bangladesh at the Korogi Sports Park. The winner of the contest will face Sri Lanka in the gold medal match after the island nation defeated Pakistan by eight wickets in the first semi-final. (ANI)
India men's table tennis team begin Asian Games campaign with 3-0 win over Indonesia
