India's compound archery teams — both men's and women's — stormed into the semifinals of the Asian Games 2026 at Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Multipurpose Square in Nagoya on 27 September, defeating Kazakhstan and Bhutan respectively in the quarterfinals. Both teams now face a stern test against South Korea in the last four, with the medal rounds set for 30 September.

Women's Team: Narrow Win Over Kazakhstan

The Indian compound women's side of Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Chikitha Taniparthi, and Prithika Pradeep edged past Kazakhstan's Roxana Yunussova, Viktoriya Lyan, and Adel Zhexenbinova by a slim 233-230 margin in the quarterfinals. The team had qualified second overall and opened their campaign with a commanding 238-223 victory over Mongolia in the Round of 16 before advancing past Kazakhstan.

Men's Team: Battling Past Bhutan

The compound men's trio of Kushal Dalal, Sahil Jadhav, and Ganesh Mani Ratnam overcame Bhutan's Kezang Norbu, Tshetum Gaytshey, and Tandin Dorji 235-232 in a closely contested quarterfinal. The men had finished third in qualification and had earlier beaten the UAE 235-215 in the Round of 16. They now prepare for a semifinal clash with South Korea, who are perennial favourites in the discipline.

Olympic Quota Stakes Add to the Drama

The stakes at this tournament extend well beyond continental glory. The compound mixed team event carries particular significance — with the discipline set to make its historic Olympic debut at the LA28 Games, one quota place for both a male and female archer is on offer at these Asian Games for the mixed team champions. Overall, eight LA28 Olympic quota places are available across archery events here, with two each in the recurve men's and women's individual categories, and one combined quota apiece for the recurve and compound mixed team winners. This makes every point and every arrow count far beyond the podium.

India's Record Hangzhou Legacy

India arrives at these Asian Games riding the momentum of its most successful archery campaign ever — at the Hangzhou 2023 Asian Games, the country won a record nine medals, comprising five gold, two silver, and two bronze. Notably, the compound archers swept all five gold medals on offer in Hangzhou, while the recurve contingent contributed a silver and a bronze. The current generation is aiming to sustain — and perhaps surpass — that benchmark.

Surfing: Indian Surfers Also Advance

In other Asian Games action on Sunday, Indian surfers Sugar Shanti Gayen and Kamali Prakash progressed to Round 3 of the women's shortboard event after winning their respective heats. Sugar Shanti scored 7.33 (3.83+3.50) to beat Chinese Taipei's Chen Wan-yu, who managed 5.40, while Kamali posted 7.57 (4.17+3.40) against Singapore's Camille Marie Spaccarotella, who scored 4.50. Meanwhile, Sivaraj Bau joined Kishore Kumar in Round 3 of the men's event, defeating Iran's Davoud Khadir with a score of 8.96 across two waves.