Aichi-Nagoya, 25 September (H.S.): India’s Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar advanced to the semifinals of the mixed doubles squash event at the 2026 Asian Games on Friday, assuring the country of at least a bronze medal.

The Indian pair defeated the Philippines’ David Pelino and Jemyca Aribado 11-3, 11-5 in straight games in the quarterfinals. With this victory, Chinappa and Velavan progressed to the medal rounds.

The medal is particularly significant for 40-year-old Joshna Chinappa. She has secured another Asian Games medal after a gap of 16 years. She has previously won medals for India at the continental level as well.

The Indian pair will face Hong Kong’s Lee Ka Yi and Tang Ming Hong in the semifinals on Saturday. The Indian players will look to secure a victory and book their place in the final.

Meanwhile, India also secured a medal in table tennis. Manush Shah and Diya Chitale defeated Hong Kong’s Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem in the mixed doubles quarterfinals to enter the semifinals. However, Harmeet Desai and Yashaswini Ghorpade suffered a defeat against China’s Lin Shidong and Kuai Man.

In badminton, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto defeated the Maldives’ Aminath Abdul Razzaq and Nibal Ahmed to enter the second round of the mixed doubles event. In shooting, Kamaljeet and Suruchi Inder Singh finished at the top of the 10m Air Pistol Mixed Team qualification standings.

In swimming, Rishabh Das and Utkarsh Patil qualified for the final of the men’s 200m backstroke. Dhanush Suresh, Anish Sunil and Dakshan Shashikumar, however, failed to progress in their respective events.

In canoe sprint, Prohit Barai and Prasanna Kumar qualified for Final B in the men’s kayak doubles 500m event, while Megha Pradeep and Neha Leichonbam were eliminated from the women’s canoe doubles 500m event.

In fencing, India’s men’s foil and women’s épée teams saw their campaigns end in the Round of 16. The men’s team lost to Hong Kong, while the women’s team went down to Uzbekistan. In the women’s heptathlon in athletics, Anamika Aneesh and Pooja remained in seventh and ninth positions, respectively, after the long jump.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar