Ichinomiya City: India secured a medal in the men’s team badminton event at the 2026 Asian Games after producing a commanding 3-0 victory over Japan in the quarterfinals at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Tuesday.
Lakshya Sen overcame a major challenge from Kodai Naraoka in the opening singles before the doubles combination of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty put India within touching distance of the last four. Ayush Shetty then completed the job with a straight-game victory over Koki Watanabe.
Lakshya had to dig deep after losing the opening game 11-21. The Indian responded emphatically, racing through the second game 21-5 to force a decider.
Naraoka appeared to regain control in the third game and opened up a five-point advantage, but Lakshya mounted a remarkable fightback. He levelled the contest at 19-19, then won the next two points to seal an 11-21, 21-5, 21-19 victory.
The pressure then shifted to the doubles court, where world No. 5 Satwiksairaj and Chirag faced Japan’s world No. 9 pair Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi, former world champions.
The Indian duo edged a tightly contested opening game 21-18. The second game went down to the wire after Japan saved three match points and forced the score to 20-20. Satwik and Chirag held their nerve, eventually winning 24-22 to give India a 2-0 lead.
Ayush was then given the responsibility of closing out the tie, and the young Indian delivered in style against Watanabe. He controlled the opening game from the outset and won it 21-10.
Watanabe attempted to fight back in the second, but Ayush maintained control and reached the midway point with an 11-5 advantage. He eventually closed out the contest 21-10, 21-19, sending India into the semifinals and guaranteeing the team at least a bronze medal.
India had begun its campaign with a 3-0 victory over Bangladesh in the round of 16. The men’s team will now await the winner of the quarterfinal between China and South Korea in the semifinal on Wednesday.
The result also keeps India in contention to improve on their performance from the previous edition, where the men’s team won a silver medal after losing the final to China.
(IANS)
