India has a packed day at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, with athletes competing across several disciplines on Monday, September 21. The day features key team clashes, medal events and individual contests, with kabaddi, table tennis and shooting among the major attractions.
The Indian contingent will also have medal opportunities in shooting and mixed martial arts, while the women’s hockey team continues its campaign after a big opening victory. The men’s badminton team also begins its team event against Bangladesh.
India vs Pakistan in table tennis
One of the biggest fixtures of the day will see India face Pakistan in table tennis. The women’s team takes on Pakistan in a Group F match at 6:30am IST, while the men’s team meets Pakistan in another Group F fixture at 3:30pm.
The women’s team enters the contest after wins over Indonesia and Singapore, while the men’s team had beaten Indonesia before losing to Iran. Both India-Pakistan fixtures will be part of the group-stage battle for progression to the knockout rounds.
Kabaddi title defence begins
India’s men’s kabaddi team begins its campaign against hosts Japan at 9:45am IST. The women’s team will also start its campaign later in the day against Bangladesh at 4:15pm.
India enters the competition as defending champions in both men’s and women’s kabaddi. The opening matches will therefore mark the start of the teams’ attempts to retain their Asian Games titles.
Shooters chase more medals
Shooting will again be a major focus for India after the country opened its medal account with two silver medals in women’s 10m air rifle on Sunday.
Parth Mane, Himanshu Dhillon and Rudranksh Patil compete in the men’s 10m air rifle qualification from 6:15am. The team final is also scheduled in the same session, while the individual final is scheduled for 9am, subject to qualification.
India will also have shooters competing in men’s and women’s skeet. Mairaj Ahmad Khan, Anant Jeet Singh Naruka and Bhavtegh Singh Gill will compete in the men’s event, while Parinaaz Dhaliwal, Raiza Dhillon and Maheshwari Chauhan will represent India in women’s skeet.
Suchika Tariyal has medal assured in MMA
Suchika Tariyal will be in action in the women’s traditional 60kg MMA semi-final against Singapore’s Teo Hui Hoon. The bout is scheduled for 8:30am IST.
Suchika has already assured India of a medal after progressing through the earlier stage. A victory against Teo would take her into the final and give her a chance to fight for gold.
Hockey team takes on Indonesia
India’s women’s hockey team faces Indonesia at 9:30am in a Pool B match. The team began its campaign with a 19-0 victory over Uzbekistan and will now continue its group-stage campaign against Indonesia.
The match is one of the day’s major team fixtures for India.
Badminton and boxing also begin
Lakshya Sen and the Indian men’s badminton team start their campaign against Bangladesh at 11:30am. The squad includes HS Prannoy, Kidambi Srikanth, Ayush Shetty, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty among others.
Boxing also gets underway for India, with Sumit Kundu taking on Thailand’s Sinsiri Bunjong in the men’s 70kg Round of 32. The bout is scheduled for the afternoon session.
Wushu and swimming round off a busy day
Roshibina Devi begins her women’s 60kg sanda campaign against Bangladesh’s Most Shika Khatun in the afternoon. India will also have Aryan competing in the men’s 56kg sanda event against Afghanistan’s Shahzada Safi.
Swimming features several Indian athletes in morning heats, including Srihari Nataraj and Rishabh Das in the men’s 50m backstroke. Akash Mani and Heer Gitesh Shah compete in the 50m freestyle, while Danush Suresh takes part in the 100m breaststroke. India’s men’s 4x200m freestyle relay team will also be in action.
India’s Asian Games fixtures on September 21
5:30am – Sepaktakraw, India vs Japan, men’s team regu
5:30am – Soft tennis, Jay Meena and Aadhya Tiwari, mixed doubles
6:15am – Shooting, men’s 10m air rifle qualification and team final
6:30am – Table tennis, India vs Pakistan, women’s team
6:30am – Shooting, men’s and women’s skeet
6:32am onwards – Swimming heats
8:30am – MMA, Suchika Tariyal vs Teo Hui Hoon
9:00am – Shooting, men’s 10m air rifle individual final, if qualified
9:30am – Hockey, India vs Indonesia, women’s Pool B
9:45am – Kabaddi, India vs Japan, men’s Group A
11:30am – Badminton, India vs Bangladesh, men’s team
2:45pm onwards – Boxing, Sumit Kundu vs Sinsiri Bunjong
3:00pm onwards – Wushu, Roshibina Devi and Aryan
3:30pm – Table tennis, India vs Pakistan, men’s team
4:15pm – Kabaddi, India vs Bangladesh, women’s Group A
