Glasgow: India’s swimming campaign at the Commonwealth Games 2026 started on a high note on Friday as Olympian Srihari Nataraj secured a place in the men’s 50m backstroke semifinals, while para swimmer Budigina and Ali Imam produced impressive performances to qualify for the men’s 100m freestyle S13 final.
Nataraj finished fifth in Heat 4 of the men’s 50m backstroke after clocking 25.52 seconds to comfortably book his place among the top 16 swimmers progressing to the semifinals.
England’s Oliver Morgan won the heat in 24.91 seconds, while compatriots Jack Skerry (25.08) and Matthew Ward (25.16), along with Benjamin Winterborn (25.37), also advanced from the same heat. A total of 40 swimmers competed across the heats, with the fastest 16 making it through to the semifinals.
The Indian swimmer finished 0.61 seconds behind Morgan and will now look to improve his timing in the semifinals, scheduled to begin at 12:30 AM IST on Saturday.
In the para swimming competition, Budigina underlined his growing reputation as one of India’s brightest medal hopes with a remarkable effort in the men’s 100m freestyle S13 event.
The Indian clocked 57.10 seconds to finish third in his race, just 0.53 seconds behind Britain’s Stephen Clegg, who topped the field. Budigina displayed an excellent finish after being placed fourth at the halfway mark before accelerating strongly over the closing stages to move into the top three.
His late burst saw him overtake James Clegg, who had been running second midway through the race, while Stephen Clegg and South Africa’s Hendricks finished ahead.
Fellow Indian Ali Imam also progressed to the final after returning a time of 1:05.32. Although he finished 8.75 seconds behind the heat leader, his performance was enough to secure qualification for the medal race. The final of the S13 freestyle will be held on Saturday, with India hoping to get their first medal of the ongoing tournament in swimming.
(IANS)
