India claimed two notable sporting achievements at the Asian Games 2026 in Nagoya on Wednesday, 23 September, as the women's skeet team of Parinaaz Dhaliwal, Razia Dhillon, and Maheshwari Chauhan secured a bronze medal, while Jay Meena etched his name in history by becoming the first Indian to win a medal in soft tennis at the Asian Games.

Women's Skeet Team: Bronze After Three Days of Qualification

Following three days of gruelling qualification rounds, the Indian trio posted a combined score of 331 to finish third on the podium. China — represented by Che Yufei, Jian Yiting, and Jiang Chaoyu — claimed gold with a dominant score of 347, while Kazakhstan (Assem Orynbay, Zoya Piskun, and Adel Sadakbayeva) took silver with 336. India's margin behind the silver medallists was five points — a narrow gap that will give the team cause for reflection ahead of future competitions.

With this bronze, India's shooting medal tally at Asian Games 2026 rose to seven, comprising four silvers and two bronzes. For context, India had an unprecedented haul of 22 shooting medals — seven golds, nine silvers, and six bronzes — at the previous edition held in Hangzhou.

Manu Bhaker Qualifies for Air Pistol Final; Team Falls Short of Medal

Elsewhere on the shooting range, double Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker qualified for the 10m air pistol final after finishing third in qualification with a score of 579-20x. However, the Indian women's team of Esha, Manu, and Suruchi narrowly missed the podium in the team final. India reportedly lost the bronze medal to Vietnam by just two inner-10s — an agonising near-miss that underscores both the team's quality and the razor-thin margins at this level.

Jay Meena's Historic Soft Tennis Comeback

Jay Meena produced one of the most dramatic results for India at these Games, engineering a stunning comeback win over Sherwin Nuguit in the soft tennis quarter-final to secure India's first-ever Asian Games medal in the sport. Locked at 3-3 heading into the deciding game, Meena found himself trailing 3-5 before reeling off four consecutive points to clinch the match 4-3.

Meena now advances to the semi-finals, where he will face either Japan's Takuya Kurosaka or Chinese Taipei's Yu-sung Chang. Crucially, both losing semi-finalists are guaranteed a bronze medal, meaning Meena has already secured India's historic podium finish in the discipline. A win would put him in the gold medal match.

India's Overall Standing at Asian Games 2026

India currently sit eighth in the overall medal tally with one gold, four silvers, and three bronzes. This is a notable step down from the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, where India finished fourth overall with a record 107 medals. The campaign is still very much alive, however, with multiple events and finals pending across disciplines.

With Meena guaranteed at least a semi-final appearance and Bhaker set for the air pistol final, India's medal count is expected to rise further over the coming days.