Asian Games 2026 Day 3: Mirabai ends drought, Manu misses out on shooting medal
Mirabai Chanu finally found an Asian Games podium, while Manu Bhaker’s 10m air pistol campaign ended without a medal as India experienced a day of contrasting fortunes in Aichi-Nagoya. Chanu’s silver ended India’s 28-year wait for a weightlifting medal, but Bhaker’s fifth place summed up a frustrating morning at the range.
Chanu lifted 198 kg in the women’s 49 kg category to finish behind North Korea’s Ri Song Gum, who retained her title at 215 kg. It was Chan’s first Asian Games medal after finishing ninth in 2014, missing out on the 2018 Games and finishing fourth in Hangzhou in 2023.
Asian Games 2026 Day 3: MAIN VALUES
Bhaker, meanwhile, qualified third with 579 but failed to carry that form into the final. The two-time Olympic medalist finished fifth with 181.1, while Esha Singh and Suruchi Inder Singh were already eliminated in the qualifiers, leaving India without a medal in action where there were great expectations.
Some consolation was in the shooting, with both the women’s and men’s skeet teams winning bronze. India also added medals through Jay Meena in soft tennis and the men’s badminton team, while Roshibina Devi secured another Asian Games medal by reaching the wushu 60kg Sanda final.
India’s tally moved to 12 medals, including one gold, five silver and six bronze. It was a day where some of the country’s biggest names slipped away, but several others stepped forward to keep the medal tally moving.
MIRABAI FINALLY GETS HER MOMENT
Chanu’s medal was long overdue. She completed all three of her snatch attempts and finished at 87kg before clearing 107kg and 111kg in the clean and jerk to reach 198kg.
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After finally winning her first medal at the Asian Games, Mirabai Chanu gets emotional and reflects on what this silver means after such a long wait.
Follow up pic.twitter.com/vljkFm7Via— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) September 23, 2026
Ri was in a different class, setting world records on her way to 215kg, while Indonesia’s Luluk Diana Tri Wijayana took bronze at 191kg. However, Chanu comfortably stayed out of the chase.
The result ended India’s 28-year wait for an Asian Games weightlifting medal. Karnam Malleswari’s silver in Bangkok in 1998 remained the country’s last podium finish in the sport.
It also removed one of the few major omissions from an otherwise decorated career for Chana. After coming agonizingly close to fourth place in Hangzhou, she eventually left the Asian Games with a medal.
MANU’S MISSED OPPORTUNITY
India entered the women’s 10m air pistol with a formidable trio of Bhaker, Esha and Suruchi, but only Bhaker made it to the individual final.
Esha with 572 placed 15th in the qualifiers while Suruchi scored 568 to miss out on the finals. Bhaker came in third with 579 but could not maintain that consistency when a medal was on the line and was eliminated in fifth place.
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Manu Bhaker opens up about how to handle pressure, learn from every shot and stay positive through sporting highs and lows.
Watch the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya LIVE on Sony Sports Network TV pic.twitter.com/BTZrLcXovr— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) September 23, 2026
India also finished fourth in the team competition after tying Vietnam with 1719 points. Vietnam won bronze in the indoor 10 with 46 shots closest to the center compared to India’s 44.
This created a stark contrast to Hangzhou, where Palak Gulia won individual gold, Esha took silver and India also took team silver. Bhaker still has the 25m pistol event ahead of her, giving her another opportunity later in the Games.
Skeet shooters clinched medals for India. The women’s team bronze was won by Raiza Dhillon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Maheshwari Chauhan, before Anant Jeet Singh Naruka, Bhavtegh Singh Gill and Mairaj Ahmad Khan added another bronze in the men’s event.
BADMINTON RETURNS TO THE PODIUM
The Indian men’s badminton team secured the bronze medal after the semi-finals, although their campaign ended with a 3-1 defeat to China.
The team entered the last four after a memorable quarter-final against Japan, where Lakshya Sen produced one of the most striking comebacks of the day. Trailing Kodai Naraoka deep into the decider, Lakshya fought back to win 11-21, 21-5, 21-19 to put India in the lead.
Satwik and Chirag then beat Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi to seal the tie, with Ayush Shetty completing the 3-0 win. The semi-final against China proved tougher, with Lakshya losing to Shi Yu Qi before Satwik and Chirag leveled the tie. China eventually won the next two matches to reach the final.
Nevertheless, the bronze means India have now won medals in the men’s team event at consecutive Asian Games after the gold in Hangzhou.
ROSHIBINA KEEPING HER MEDALS
Roshibina Devi will have another chance to add an Asian Games gold to her collection after reaching the Sandy 60kg final.
Manipuri beat Indonesia’s Thania Kusumaningtyas in the semi-finals to at least guarantee themselves silver. It will be her third consecutive Asian Games medal, having won bronze in 2018 and silver in 2023.
Roshibina already secured a medal with her quarter-final win, but Wednesday’s semi-final win took her one step further. She will now fight for gold and a chance to improve on the silver she won in Hangzhou.
MEENA CLAIMS SOFT TENNIS HISTORY
Jay Meena also secured a piece of Indian sports history by winning the first ever Asian Games medal in soft tennis.
Meena reached the semi-finals after defeating Sherwin Nuguit of the Philippines in the quarter-finals. He ended up losing to Japan’s Takuya Kurosaka in the last four, but a semi-final appearance had already guaranteed him bronze.
Apart from the medal events, the Indian kabaddi teams continued their strong campaigns while the women’s hockey team produced another emphatic victory. But the main performances belonged to Chan, who finally broke through at the Asian Games, Roshibina, who remained on course for another medal, and the badminton team, who secured India’s return to the podium.
KABADDI GOES ON, HOCKEY IS GOING ON
Indian kabaddi teams continued their strong starts. The women’s team beat Iran 37-23, while the men followed with a 48-25 win over Bangladesh, making both sides unbeaten in their respective campaigns.
The women’s hockey team posted another big score as they beat Thailand 20-1. Deepika Sehrawat was the standout with nine goals as India continued their campaign in dominant fashion.
There was less joy in sepaktakraw where India lost 3-0 to Malaysia. As a result, the team faced a tougher journey in the competition as India looked set to bounce back from the defeat.
At the end of Day 3, the medal winners gave India a lot to push forward, although the missed chances in the shootout remained hard to overlook. Chan’s long-awaited silver, Roshibina’s certain medal and the badminton team’s bronze were among the day’s key gains as India continued to strengthen in kabaddi and hockey.
– The end
Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
23 Sep 2026 18:27 IST