Aichi-Nagoya: Defending champions India stormed into the women's kabaddi final at the Asian Games 2026 after defeating Nepal 48-24 in the semi-final on Friday.
India started strongly and took a 9-5 lead after the opening five minutes, with the defending champions picking up points through raids, while Nepal looked to put pressure on India's defence.
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Nepal continued to challenge India and produced a super tackle on Sonali, preventing the Indian raider from reaching the line. India maintained a five-point advantage at 15-10 as Nepal continued to test the defending champions.
Nepal's Ganga Ghimire then produced a standout raid, earning four points despite facing ankle holds as she managed to touch the line. After a lengthy check, the raid was confirmed as four points, reducing the gap as India led 21-15 with four minutes remaining in the first half.
India, however, gradually tightened its grip on the contest and extended the advantage before the break. Strong performances from Sanju Devi and Sonali helped India take a commanding 31-17 lead at half-time.
The defending champions continued to dominate after the restart and maintained a comfortable cushion throughout the second half.
India eventually completed a comprehensive 48-24 victory to book their place in the final. India will face either Chinese Taipei or Iran in the final, scheduled to be played on Saturday. The Indian women's kabaddi team will now look to defend its Asian Games title and add another gold medal to the country's campaign in Aichi-Nagoya.
Meanwhile, India enjoyed a strong day at the Asian Games 2026, with shooting leading the medal charge. Kamaljeet and Suruchi Inder Singh won gold in the 10m air pistol mixed team event, while Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar, Rudrankksh Patil and Niraj Kumar secured silver in the men's 50m rifle 3 positions team event. Tomar and Niraj also advanced to the individual final.
India confirmed medals in table tennis and squash, with Diya Chitale-Manush Shah and Joshana Chinappa-Velavan Senthilkumar reaching the respective mixed doubles semifinals. Abhay Singh also entered the men's singles squash semifinals after beating Japan's Ryunosuke Tsukue 3-0. Yashaswini Ghorpade progressed to the third round of women's singles table tennis.
In hockey, India defeated Japan 3-1 in the women's Pool B match, while Sajan Prakash, Rishabh Das and Utkarsh Patil advanced to swimming finals. Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto and Unnati Hooda began their badminton campaigns with wins.
India also advanced to Final B in men's kayak double 500m, while the women's kayak four finished eighth. There were exits in fencing, canoe sprint and swimming, while India's women's heptathlon athletes Anamika Aneesh and Pooja remained seventh and ninth, respectively, overall. In esports, India lost 0-2 to South Korea in Pokemon Unite.
