Badminton Day 1 Recap: Satwik-Chirag knocked out; Dhruv-Tanisha reaches quarters at Asian Games 2026

Treesa-Gayatri also advanced to the next round

The individual badminton events at the Asian Games 2026 got underway on Friday, September 25, with several Indian shuttlers taking the court at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium.

India had a mixed opening day, with three combinations progressing in their respective events while three Indian pairs were knocked out. The biggest talking point was the shock first-round exit of defending men’s doubles champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.

Satwik-Chirag suffer shock exit

The biggest upset for India came in men’s doubles, as the fourth seeds, Satwik-Chirag, were knocked out by Thailand’s Peeratchai Sukphun and Pakkapon Teeratsakul.

The Indians won the opening game 21-12 and appeared to be on course for a straightforward victory. However, the Thai pair fought back to take the second game 21-19 before completing the upset with a 21-14 win in the decider.

Also Read: Asian Games 2026: Satwik-Chirag suffer shock first-round exit to World No. 36 opponents

Satwik and Chirag eventually went down 21-12, 19-21, 14-21, bringing their title defence to an early end. The result is a major setback for the Indians, who had won the men’s doubles gold medal at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou.

Unnati Hooda progresses

Unnati Hooda made a strong start to her women’s singles campaign, defeating North Korea’s Yu Mi Song 21-9, 21-10. The Indian youngster controlled the contest from the beginning and needed just two games to book her place in the next round.

Unnati will next face Malaysia’s Wong Ling Ching in the round of 32.

Meanwhile, PV Sindhu received a first-round bye and will begin her campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Pin-Chian.

Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty also received byes and will begin their men’s singles campaigns on September 26.

Also Read: Badminton at Asian Games 2026: Full schedule, fixtures, results, live streaming details

Treesa-Gayatri survive a tough battle

The Treesa Jolly–Gayatri Gopichand pair also advanced, but they had to work hard against Hong Kong’s Lui Lok Lok and Tsang Hiu Yan.

The Indian combination won the opening game 21-16, but Hong Kong levelled the contest by taking the second game 21-16. Treesa and Gayatri then held their nerve in the decider, winning 21-16 to seal a place in the round of 16.

Treesa-Gayatri now face a rematch against Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto on September 26, having defeated the Japanese pair in straight games in the women’s team event earlier this week.

Dhruv-Tanisha reach quarter-finals

Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto were the standout Indian pair on Day 1, winning both their mixed-doubles matches to reach the quarter-finals.

They began with a comfortable 21-8, 21-7 victory over Maldives’ Ahmed Nibal and Aminath Nabeeha Abdul Razzaq. The second match was considerably tougher. The Indians edged Malaysia’s Goh Soon Huat and Lai Shevon Jemie 22-20, 24-22 in a closely fought contest.

Their reward is a quarter-final against top seeds Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping of China.

Kavipriya-Simran and Arjun-Hariharan bow out

India also suffered two defeats in the doubles events.

Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi lost to Indonesia’s Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilysa Trias Puspitasari 21-9, 21-5.

In men’s doubles, Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun faced second seeds Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and went down 21-14, 21-11.

With the opening day complete, India’s individual campaign has already produced contrasting results. Unnati Hooda, Treesa-Gayatri and Dhruv-Tanisha remain in contention, while Satwik-Chirag, Kavipriya-Simran and Arjun-Hariharan have been eliminated.

The focus now shifts to Day 2, when PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty will begin their individual campaigns. Sindhu will face Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Pin-Chian, Lakshya will take on Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew, while Ayush Shetty will meet Kazakhstan’s Makhsut Tajibullayev.

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