Rishabh Das Storms Into Asian Games 100m Backstroke Final With Personal Best

India will have representation in the men’s 100m backstroke final at the Asian Games 2026, with Rishabh Das producing a strong personal-best performance to qualify fifth overall from the heats.

Das clocked 54.85 seconds in Heat 3, finishing third in his heat behind China’s Xu Jiayu and South Korea’s Lee Juho. More importantly, his time was the fifth-fastest across all heats, securing his place in the medal-round final.

The performance marks another important step in the young Indian swimmer’s progression on the continental stage.

Das entered the 100m backstroke heats with a previous personal best of 55.44 seconds, recorded at this year’s National Championships. He significantly improved on that mark in the Asian Games heats, stopping the clock at 54.85 seconds. That represents an improvement of 0.59 seconds, a substantial gain in a sprint event where hundredths of a second can determine qualification and finishing positions.

Competing in Heat 3, Das faced some of the strongest swimmers in the field. China’s Xu Jiayu, one of the leading backstroke swimmers in Asia, won the heat in 52.63 seconds, while South Korea’s Lee Juho finished second in 54.43. Das followed in third at 54.85.

The 0.42-second gap between Lee and Das shows how closely contested the battle was for the second and third positions in the heat. However, qualification for the final was determined by the overall times across all heats, and Das’s 54.85 was good enough for fifth place overall.

With only eight swimmers advancing to the final, the Indian secured his place comfortably.

Fifth fastest across the heats

Das’s overall fifth-place ranking makes his performance particularly significant. China’s Xu Jiayu topped the qualifying standings with 52.63 seconds, followed by Japan’s Takehara Hidekazu at 54.22 and South Korea’s Lee Juho at 54.43. Japan’s Nishiono Kodai finished fourth in 54.73, with Das completing the top five at 54.85.

Das was followed by Indonesia’s Yusuf Jason, China’s Jiang Chenglin and South Korea’s Yoon Jihwan among the other finalists. The Indian therefore enters the final ranked fifth, with less than a second separating him from the swimmer ranked second in the heats.

India had another entry in the men’s 100m backstroke, with Utkarsh Patil competing in the same heat as Das. Patil finished sixth in Heat 3 with a time of 56.19 seconds. His overall position was 12th, leaving him outside the eight qualifying places for the final. While Patil missed out on the medal round, India will now have one representative in the event’s final, with Das carrying the country’s challenge.

The final is scheduled for 2:43 PM IST, giving Das an opportunity to improve further on his already impressive morning performance.

The final will feature a considerably stronger test, with Xu Jiayu leading the field after his 52.63-second heat performance. The Chinese swimmer has established himself as one of the leading backstroke specialists in Asia, and his qualification time gives him a clear position at the top of the field heading into the final.

For Das, however, the focus will be on reproducing or improving upon his personal-best performance. His 54.85-second swim has already demonstrated that he can compete alongside some of the continent’s established names. The final will provide a completely different environment, with all eight swimmers racing simultaneously for the medals.

Das is currently 1.08 seconds behind the second-fastest qualifier, while the Indian remains 2.22 seconds behind Xu Jiayu. There is also room for further improvement. His new personal best of 54.85 seconds remains outside the Indian national record of 53.77 seconds, meaning a significant improvement could potentially put him closer to the country's best-ever mark.

The result comes after a disappointing morning in the men’s 100m freestyle, where India had two swimmers competing but neither advanced to the next round. Beniston Benedict clocked 50.25 seconds, while Mani Akash finished in 50.85 seconds. Both missed out on qualification for the next round. Das’s performance therefore provides a much-needed positive result for the Indian swimming contingent.

From a personal-best swim to a fifth-place overall qualification, the 100m backstroke has already become one of the notable moments of India’s swimming campaign at the Asian Games.

Now, Das has one more race to make it count.

Rishabh Das will return to the pool for the men’s 100m backstroke final at 2:43 PM IST, with an Asian Games medal now within reach.