Aichi-Nagoya, 26 September (H.S.): Indian badminton player Ayush Shetty advanced to the pre-quarterfinals of the men’s singles event at the 2026 Asian Games after defeating Kazakhstan’s Makhsut Tazhibullayev 21-7, 21-7 in straight games in the second round on Saturday.

Ayush made an aggressive start to the contest and kept his Kazakh opponent under sustained pressure with his swift movement and precise shot-making. The Indian secured victory in just 18 minutes to book his place in the next round.

Ayush maintained his lead from the outset in both games and gave Tazhibullayev no opportunity to stage a comeback. He wrapped up the match by winning both games by an identical scoreline of 21-7.

Ayush will face a considerably tougher challenge in the pre-quarterfinals, where he is set to take on Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien-chen, the current BWF World Tour No. 1.

Ayush will now look to maintain his impressive momentum as he takes the court determined to progress further in the men’s singles competition.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar