2026 Asian Games: India and the 100-medal tally
ISH Exclusive
India has a contingent of over 500 athletes at the 2026 Asian Games. Can they replicate their success from Hangzhou in Aichi-Nagoya and bag 100 medals again?
India will send a contingent of over 500 athletes to the 75th edition of the Asian Games, to be held in Aichi-Nagoya from 19th September to 4th October 2026. In the previous edition of the games held in Hangzhou, India breached the 100-medal tally for the first time and finished as the fourth-best nation on the leaderboard. This article discusses whether the Indian athletes can replicate or improve their performance at the 2026 Asian Games.
GUARANTEED SUCCESS - CRICKET, FIELD HOCKEY, KABADDI
Six definite medal prospects in exclusive team events are cricket, field hockey, and kabaddi in both the men's and women's competitions. India's men's cricket team won its ninth Asia Cup title last year, while the women's team has already secured its spot in the final of the ongoing Asia Cup.
In hockey, the women's team recorded its best performance of the 21st century, finishing fifth at the FIH World Cup and becoming the best Asian team in the competition. Though the men's team finished eighth, it was still the best Asian team in the FIH World Cup.
In Kabaddi, India has won every edition of the World Cup in both the men's and women's categories. Similar to the 2022 Asian Games, the men's and women's teams are guaranteed to secure a medal for the tricolor.
STRONG Ws - WEIGHT-LIFTING AND WRESTLING
Two of India's strongest areas are weightlifting and wrestling. In weightlifting, three of the four lifters en route to the 2026 Asian Games bagged a medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games: Mirabai Chanu, Gyaneshwari Yadav, and Harjinder Kaur. Unfortunately, Rishikanta Singh, who was also one of the athletes who secured a podium finish at Glasgow, had to be ruled out of the competition due to injury. Seram Nirupama Devi, who secured a silver medal at the 2025 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in the 63 kg category, will also be a medal prospect in the 61 kg category at the Asian Games.
In the last edition, India won a medal in wrestling across six categories. Out of the 18-member squad sent for Aichi-Nagoya, six wrestlers show immense promise to secure a medal - 2024 Olympics Bronze medalist Aman Sehrawat (57 kg), 2026 Asian Championships Gold medalist Sujeet Kalkal (65 kg), 2022 Asian Games bronze medalist Deepak Punia (97 kg), 2025 Asian Championships bronze medalist Antim Panghal (53 kg), 2025 Asian Championships gold medalist Manisha Bhanwala (57 kg), and defending Asian Games bronze medalist and 2026 Asian Championships bronze medalist Sunil Kumar (87 kg).
MIGHTY BOXERS AND JUDOKAS
India shone at the 2026 Commonwealth Games as the best nation in boxing, with 10 medals, 7 of which were gold. Of the 11 players representing India, eight won a medal in Glasgow. All eight competitors are likely to step on the podium again: Jadumani Singh (55 kg), Sachin Siwach (60 kg), Ankush Panghal (80 kg), Narender Berwal (+90 kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (51 kg), Preeti Pawar (54 k), Priya Ghanghas (60 kg), and Lovlina Borgohain (75 kg). Notably, Parveen Hooda, who was stripped of her bronze medal at the 2022 Asian Games due to a whereabouts failure, is another medal prospect, especially after winning gold at the 2025 World Boxing Cup in the 60 kg category.
In judo, Asmita Dey (48 kg) and Yamini Mourya (57 kg), who secured the gold and silver at the 2026 CWG, respectively, will be the favorites at the 2026 Asian Games. Another promising judoka is Inunganbi Takhellambam (70 kg), who won the bronze medal at the 2026 Asian Championships.
ON THEIR RACQUET - SQUASH, BADMINTON, TENNIS
As the champions of the 2025 Squash World Cup, India remains a favorite to dominate the sport in this edition of the Asian Games. Previously, India secured five medals in squash. However, this time, Saurav Ghosal's absence will leave a massive void for Abhay Singh and Veer Chotrani to fill. Both players will be among the top four seeds, making a podium finish highly probable for one of them. India is well placed to secure a medal in the men's and women's team events. Two other prospective podium finishes include the mixed doubles pairing of Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar, and Anahat Singh in the women's singles category. In team events, the men's team is more likely to reach the Top 3.
Badminton has always been a thrilling sport for Indian athletes to excel in, in a sport dominated by Asians globally. The doubles pairing of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy is a favorite to win the men's doubles category, especially after their title finish at the China Masters recently. Gayatri Gopichand and Tressa Jolly's historic bronze medal at the 2026 Badminton World Championships makes them viable medal contenders. The men's team, which won silver at the previous Asian Games, is again in contention for a podium finish. Even though she transiently made a comeback inside the World's Top 10, P.V. Sindhu will face a daunting task of overcoming some of the best athletes in world badminton at the Asian Games. Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty are remarkable Indian shuttlers, but the prospect of securing a medal at the Asian Games will remain an element of surprise.
The men's doubles category in lawn tennis is an event in which India has won a medal in each edition of the Asian Games since 2002. This year, the baton passes to the pairs of Yuki Bhambri & Dhakshineshwar Suresh, and Anirudh Chandrasekar & Sriram Balaji. Sumit Nagal in men's singles, and the experienced duo of Ankita Raina and Rutuja Bhosale in women's doubles will have to punch above their weight to have a chance at a medal win.
RIDING THE TIDE - ROWING, SAILING, SWIMMING
India has amassed 23 medals in sailing at the Asian Games, out of which 14 are bronze. In the last edition, India won medals in three sailing categories. Four players will compete in individual events, while three pairs will compete in team events. Vishnu Saravanan seems to be India's strongest medal contender in the men's ILCA 7 category.
In rowing, India is historically the sixth-best nation at the Asian Games, with 28 medals. Last year, rowing accounted for five medals. Arvind Singh, who won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in the men's doubles lightweight sculling, will represent India in the men's singles category. A more definite medal prospect will be Ujjwal Kumar Singh's pairing with Ajay Tyagi. The latter won the 2025 Asian and Australian Rowing Championships in the lightweight doubles category.
The men's quadruple sculling team will feature Jakar Khan, who will be keen to defend his Asian Games bronze medal in this category. He will be joined by Balraj Panwar, who won the gold medal in the single sculls event at the 2025 Asian Rowing Championships. Salman Khan and Satnam Singh Ghurde complete the quartet. Jaswinder Singh was India's best rower at the 2022 Asian Games, winning silver in the men's eight and bronze in the coxless four. Along with Babu Lal Yadav, they are medal favorite in the men's coxless four category.
Swimming hasn't really been India's forte in multi-nation sporting events. However, since the development of the Veer Savarkar Sports Stadium, which hosted the 11th Asian Aquatics Championships, swimmers are likely to attract attention through the 2030 Commonwealth Games. Srihari Natraj, who won seven medals at the Asian Aquatics Championships last year, and Sajan Prakash, who won two medals in the same event, appear to be certain medal prospects this year at the Asian Games.
HIGH POTENTIAL - SEPAK TAKRAW AND EQUESTRIAN
In the last two editions of the Asian Games, India has secured a medal in Sepak Takraw. In the previous edition, India secured a bronze medal in the women's regu category. This year, no contingent will be sent in this category. However, 21 athletes have been chosen to represent the nation in the men's team regu, men's quadrant, women's quadrant, and women's doubles categories. Maipak Devi Ayekpam and Choba Devi Oinam, who were part of the bronze-winning women's regu team last year, will be part of the women's quadrant side that shows the most promise to secure a medal.
Anush Agarwalla, who won a bronze medal in individual dressage at the previous edition of the equestrian event, won't be part of the 12-member equestrian side. In this edition, Shruti Vora will spearhead the Indian equestrian contingent with the possibility of winning two medals in the team dressage and individual categories. She had an impressive run in the 2025 Asian Championships, winning three silver medals in the individual, individual freestyle, and team events. Hriday Chheda will yet again be a part of the team dressage contingent that won the gold medal in Hangzhou. Shruti Vora and Jai Sud will join him.
SPECTRAL PROWESS - GOLF, GYMNASTICS, KARATE, FENCING, KURASH
2022 Asian Games silver medalist Aditi Ashok is yet again poised to be a favorite in the women's individual category. Of the six golfers chosen, her consistent performances make her the only player likely to win a medal.
Pranati Nayak is India's lone representative in gymnastics. Although she will compete in both the all-round and vault categories, she is most likely to secure a medal in the latter. In 2025, she won the bronze medal at the Gymnastics World Championships.
Ten athletes will represent India in fencing. Bhavani Devi leads the contingent, returning to the sport after a brief suspension and surgery. However, India's best medal bet is the women's epee category, comprising Tanishka Khatri and Prachi Lohan. In August 2026, India created history at the Commonwealth Fencing Championships by finishing as the best nation in the tournament with 35 medals. Khatri and Lohan won the gold and bronze, respectively, in the women's senior epee category.
Chetan Bhatt (84 kg) and Alisha Chaudhary (55 kg) are chosen to represent India in Karate. Of the two, Alisha shows immense potential to win a medal in the 55 kg Kumite. She won the gold medal in the recently held Asian Championships. Kurash, a sport dominated by Uzbeks, will see six Indian athletes participate. Of them, Pincky Balhara, who won the bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games and was a quarterfinalist at the 2022 edition of the event, shows signs of securing a medal for the country.
THE BIG THREE - PART 1 - ARCHERY
India is the third-best nation in archery at the Asian Games. In 2022, archery accounted for nine medals. This year, India is sending a strong contingent of archers to Japan. In the compound category, Kushal Dala, who won the gold medal at the 2025 Asia Cup, is a favorite in the men's individual category. Sahil Jadhav, winner of the 2025 Rhine-Ruhr Individual gold, is also a potential medalist. Along with T.G. Mani Ratnam, the trio promises a medal finish in the men's team category.
Jyoti Surekha was the ultimate archer in the previous edition of the Asian Games, winning three gold medals in individual, mixed team, and team events. Alongside her, Prithika Pradeep shows signs of becoming a multiple medal-winning archer in individual and team events. She won the 2025 Asian Championships team gold and is likely to replicate her success in the women's and mixed team events.
In the recurve category, the trio of Dhiraj Bommadevara (2026 Antalya World Cup stage 3 individual and mixed team gold medalist), Ankita Bhakat (2025 Asian Championships individual and 2026 Team World Cup gold medalist), and Kumkum Mohod (2026 women's team and mixed team World Cup gold medalist) ensure a hefty increase in the medal count in archery this year.
THE BIG THREE - PART 2 - ATHLETICS
As the third-best country in athletics at the Asian Games, India's 79-member athletics contingent shows promise of replicating its success from the previous edition. In Hangzhou, athletics accounted for 29 medals. This year, based on their performances in the recently contested Asian Championships and Commonwealth Games, at least 24 medals seem to be in India's bag even before the start of the competition. The players and categories likely to fetch medals are listed below.
- Gurindervir Singh - Men's 100 m
- Rajesh Ramesh, Vishal TK, Dharmveer Choudhary, Jay Kumar, Manu Thekkinal, Mohammed Ashfaq - Men's 4 x 400 m Relay
- Mohammed Afsal - Men's 800 m
- Gulveer Singh - Men's 5000 m
- Gulveer Singh - Men's 10,000 m
- Santhosh Tamilarasan, Yashas Palaksha - 400 m hurdles
- Avinash Sable - Men's 3000 m steeplechase
- Ansa Babu, Kiran Pahal, Neeru Pathak, Poovamma Machettira, Prachi Choudhary, Rashdeep Kaur, Saloni Nagar, Vithya Ramraj - Women's 4 x 400 m Relay
- Pooja Olla - Women's 800 m
- Pooja Olla - Women's 1500 m
- Parul Chaudhary - Women's 5000 m
- Parul Chaudhary - Women's 3000 m steeplechase
- Jyothi Harraji - Women's 100 m hurdles
- Sarvesh Kushare - Men's High Jump
- Murali Sreeshankar - Men's Long Jump
- Praveen Chithravel - Men's Triple Jump
- Tajinderpal Singh Toor - Men's Shot Put
- Yashvir Singh - Men's Javelin
- Dev Meena - Men's Pole Vault
- Pooja Singh - Women's High Jump
- Ancy Sojan - Women's Long Jump
- Shaili Singh - Women's Long Jump
- Seema Kaliramna - Women's Discus Throw
- Tejaswin Shankar - Decathlon
THE BIG THREE - PART 3 - SHOOTING
India won 22 medals in shooting at the 2022 Asian Games. Based on their performances at the Asian Championships, World Championships, and the World Cup, the Indian squad is ready to secure at least 16 more medals in this sport. Here are the possible medalists:
- Kamaljeet - Men's 10 m Air Pistol
- Anish Bhanwala - Men's 25 m Rapid Fire Pistol
- Rudraksh Patil - Men's 10 m Air Rifle
- Aishwary Pratap Tomar - Men's 50 m Rifle Three Positions
- Anantjeet Singh Naruka - Men's Skeet
- Kynan Chenai - Men's Trap
- Esha Singh - Women's 10 m Air Pistol
- Esha Singh - Women's 25 m Air Pistol
- Manu Bhaker - Women's 10 m Air Pistol
- Manu Bhaker - Women's 25 m Air Pistol
- Suruchi Singh - Women's 10 m Air Pistol
- Elavenil Valarivan - Women's 10 m Air Rifle
- Ashi Chouksey - Women's 50 m Rifle Three Positions
- Maheshwari Chauhan, Raiza Dhillon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal - Women's Skeet Team
- Manisha Keer, Neeru Dhanda, Aashima Ahlawat - Women's Trap Team
- Neeru Dhanda - Women's Trap
SLIM CHANCES - VOLLEYBALL, SOFT TENNIS, SPORTS CLIMBING, TABLE TENNIS, TAEKWONDO, WUSHU
India's men's volleyball team qualified for the flight to Japan by virtue of the rise in their FIVB rankings after winning the bronze medal at the 2026 AVC Men's Volleyball Cup. This result shows real promise, and it would be astonishing to see India win its first volleyball medal at the Asian Games in four decades.
Despite its popularity, India has won only three table tennis medals at the Asian Games. Sutirtha Mukherjee and Ayhika Kukherjee won the bronze in women's doubles last year. This year, Sutirtha will team up with Syndrela Das. The chances of securing a medal in table tennis seem grim.
India last won a taekwondo medal at the Asian Games in 2002. This year, three players will represent the country in the sport. In Wushu, Naorem Roshibina Devi, who bagged the silver medal in the previous edition, won't be competing. As a result, prospects of a medal in these two combat sports are minimal.
India is yet to win a medal in soft tennis and sport climbing. It will send a five-member soft tennis side and two athletes in sport climbing.
DEBUTS AND SURPRISES - E-SPORTS, TEQBALL, SURFING, MMA, CANOEING, CYCLING
India won five medals across chess, bridge, and roller sports in the previous edition of the Asian Games. These sports won't be a part of the upcoming Asian Games. Hence, India will rely on sports making their debut at the games, or sports in which it has been a while since it tasted success.
At the 1994 Asian Games held in Hiroshima, Johnny Rommel and Siji Kumar Sadanandan created history by winning the first-ever medal for India in canoeing in the C-2 1000 m category. India's second canoeing medal came in Hangzhou, in the same category, when Sunil Singh Salam and Arjun Singh won bronze. This year, India is sending a large canoeing contingent of 19 athletes. The men's C-2 1000 m category will not be part of this edition's Canoeing at the Asian Games.
In Esports, Tirth Mehta won bronze in Hearthstone at the 2022 Asian Games. However, Hearthstone is not a part of the 2026 edition. This year, 15 players will represent India in events featuring eFootball, League of Legends, Pokemon Unite, and Puyo Puyo Champions.
14 athletes will take part in cycling, a sport where India last won a medal at the Asian Games in 1951. Teqball, surfing, and mixed martial arts (MMA) will make their debut at the Asian Games. Varun Sanyal (77 kg) and Suchika Tariyal (60 kg) will make history as India's first MMA representatives at the Asian Games. For the first time since 2010, India will participate in Rugby 7s. A women's side will represent the country in the Rugby 7s event.
Teqball and surfing make their debut at the Asian Games. Four athletes secured the qualification spots in surfing. Kishore Anabarashu and Sivaraj Babu will feature in the men's shortboard category, whereas Kamali Prakash and Sugar Gayen will be in the women's shortboard category. In teqball, four athletes will represent India in the women's singles, men's doubles, and mixed doubles categories.
Overall, it seems safe to say India will cross the 100-medal mark for the second consecutive edition of the Asian Games.
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