India Clinches Double Silver in Shooting, Dominates Hockey & Cricket

• by Akanksha Mishra
• 2026-09-21 16:19:00

India launched its medal campaign on an impressive note on the opening day of podium events at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 in Japan, securing two silver medals on the shooting range while asserting sheer dominance across team disciplines. Olympian Elavenil Valarivan stood at the center of the nation's flying start, spearheading the women's 10m Air Rifle team alongside Sonam Uttam Maskar and international debutant Vidarsha Vinod to capture the silver medal before delivering a clutch performance in the individual 10m Air Rifle final to secure her second silver of the day. The dual-medal breakthrough on the range positioned India tied for 10th spot in the overall medal standings at the close of Day 1, setting up strong competitive momentum as multiple medal rounds approached across continental disciplines.

Dominant Showings in Cricket, Hockey, MMA, and Racquet Sports

Beyond the shooting ranges, Indian athletes produced commanding displays across team and combat sports to ensure further podium confirmations. The Indian women's cricket team outplayed Bangladesh in their semifinal clash to secure a spot in the gold medal match, while combat specialist Suchika Tariyal marched into the semifinals of the women's traditional MMA 60kg event to guarantee at least a bronze medal for the contingent. On the hockey turf, the national squads unleashed overwhelming firepower: the Indian women's hockey team crushed Uzbekistan 19-0, and the Indian men's hockey team routed Indonesia 13-1 in their respective pool openers, accompanied by clinical winning starts from the national badminton contingent and the women's table tennis squad.

Continental Medal Standings: China Takes Early Lead as Hosts Japan Trail

At the conclusion of Day 1, China surged to the summit of the overall Asian Games medal leaderboard after amassing 20 medals, comprising 11 gold, 6 silver, and 3 bronze. Tournament hosts Japan finished the opening day in second position with an aggregate of 20 medals (6 gold, 7 silver, and 7 bronze), followed by the Republic of Korea in third with 14 medals, including 4 golds. Central Asian powerhouse Kazakhstan captured fourth place with 5 medals (3 gold, 2 bronze), while Thailand completed the top five with a perfect sweep of 3 gold medals. With secured semifinal berths in cricket and MMA alongside advancing seeds in racquet disciplines, India’s contingent looks poised to climb rapidly up the continental medal rankings.

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