Aichi-Nagoya, 21 September (H.S.): Indian mixed martial arts (MMA) athlete Suchika Tariyal made history on Monday by winning the bronze medal in the women’s Traditional 60kg category at the 2026 Asian Games. She became the first Indian athlete to win a medal in MMA at the Asian Games.

Suchika suffered a 0-2 defeat to Singapore’s Hui Hoon Teo in the semifinal. However, her place in the semifinals had already guaranteed her a bronze medal. As a result, India secured its first-ever MMA medal at the Asian Games.

Earlier on Sunday, Suchika defeated Mongolia’s Altanchimeg Baigalmaa in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals. Baigalmaa made an aggressive start in the second and final round in an attempt to fight her way back into the contest, but Suchika defended brilliantly and withstood the pressure.

Amid Baigalmaa’s sustained attacks, Suchika produced a crucial reversal to take her opponent to the ground and maintained control until the end of the round. Her impressive performance earned her a place in the semifinals and secured India’s first MMA medal at the Asian Games.

Meanwhile, in soft tennis, Adhya Tiwari and Jai Meena began their Group B campaign in the mixed doubles event with a 5-0 victory over Cambodia’s Viva Chao and Chanroseka Khun. They subsequently defeated Mongolia’s Bud Nyamdorj and Enkhkhuslen Ganbaatar. They were also scheduled to face South Korea’s Kim Yeon-hwa and Jakyu Park in their Group B fixture.

In swimming, Srihari Nataraj qualified for the final of the men’s 50m backstroke, while Rishabh Das was named as a reserve.

Mani Akash and Gitesh Shah failed to qualify for the final of the men’s 50m freestyle. Dhanush Suresh also failed to make the final of the men’s 100m breaststroke.

In wushu, Nyeman Wangsu finished 15th in the women’s Changquan final.

In table tennis, the Indian women’s team defeated Pakistan 3-0 in their Group F encounter.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar