Aichi-Nagoya [Japan], September 23 (ANI): The Indian men's skeet team of Anantjeet Singh Naruka, Mairaj Ahmed Khan and Bhavtegh Singh Gill won the bronze medal in the team event at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 on Wednesday.
The Indian trio finished third in the men's skeet team event with a total score of 346 points. India was tied with Kazakhstan for third place but secured the bronze medal after prevailing in the shoot-off.
Anantjeet Singh Naruka also advanced to the men's skeet individual final after a strong qualification performance. The final is scheduled to begin at 12:30 PM IST.
The bronze medal added to India's growing medal tally in shooting at the Asian Games, with the country continuing its strong showing in the discipline.
India are enjoying a productive day at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026, winning two bronze medals in shooting, while Jay Meena assured the country of its first-ever soft tennis medal after progressing to the semi-finals.
The Indian women's skeet team of Raiza Dhillon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Maheshwari Chauhan secured the bronze medal in the team event after finishing third with a combined score of 331. China won gold with 346 points, while Kazakhstan claimed silver.
The men's skeet team comprising Anantjeet Singh Naruka, Mairaj Ahmed Khan and Bhavtegh Singh Gill also bagged bronze after finishing third with a score of 346. India defeated Kazakhstan in the shoot-off to secure the medal. Naruka also qualified for the men's skeet individual final.
Olympic medallist Manu Bhaker reached the women's 10m air pistol individual final but finished fifth in the medal round. Suruchi Inder Singh and Esha Singh missed out on qualification for the final.
In soft tennis, Jay Meena defeated Philippines' Sherwin Nuguit in a thrilling men's singles quarter-final to enter the semi-finals. With all semi-finalists guaranteed a medal, Meena assured India of its maiden Asian Games medal in the sport.
India's women's kabaddi team continued its winning run by defeating Iran 37-23 in their Group A match. After trailing early in the contest, India made a strong comeback and secured its second consecutive victory following their opening win over Bangladesh.
In rowing, Balraj Panwar qualified for the men's single sculls final after finishing third in his heat, while Satnam Singh and Salman Khan progressed to the men's double sculls final after finishing second in their heat.
The men's kayak four 500m team of Harshwardhan Shaktawat, Varinder Singh, L Naocha Singh Oinam and Arun Singh also reached the final after finishing third in Heat 1 of canoe sprint. Megha Pradeep qualified for the women's canoe single 200m semi-final, while Parvathy Geetha and Phairembam Soniya Devi advanced to the women's kayak double 500m semi-final.
In rowing, Gurbani Kaur, Aleena Anto, Tendenthoi Haobijam and Poonam finished sixth overall in the women's four heats and qualified for Final A. Jaswinder Singh and Nitin Kumar finished fourth in the men's pair heats and will compete in Final B.
In swimming, Benedicton Beniston finished 13th overall in the men's 100m butterfly heats, while Sajan Prakash did not start the event. Vedaant Madhavan and Aneesh Sunil failed to advance from the men's 200m freestyle heats after finishing 19th and 17th respectively.
Indian paddlers also registered victories in mixed doubles. Harmeet Desai and Yashaswini Ghorpade defeated Maldives' Mohamed Ismail and Fathimath Ali, while Manush Shah and Diya Chitale beat Sri Lanka's Chanul Kulappuwawadu and Bimandee Swarna.
In sepaktakraw, India defeated the Philippines 2-1 in the men's team regu Group B match but missed out on qualification for the next stage.
India continued its strong campaign across multiple disciplines as the competition progressed at the Asian Games. (ANI)
Asian Games 2026: Indian men’s skeet team wins bronze, Naruka enters individual final
