Asian Games: India sweep Japan 3-0 to storm into badminton men’s team semifinals, assure medal

India secured at least a bronze medal in the men’s team badminton event at the 2026 Asian Games after producing a dominant 3-0 quarterfinal victory over Japan at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Tuesday.

Lakshya Sen staged a superb comeback against Kodai Naraoka in the opening singles before world No. 5 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty held their nerve in a tense doubles battle to put India within one win of the semifinals. Youngster Ayush Shetty then completed the job with a straight-games victory over Koki Watanabe.

Lakshya was forced to fight back after Naraoka took the opening game 21-11. The Indian responded in emphatic fashion, racing through the second game 21-5 to take the match into a decider.

Naraoka looked in control again in the third game and built a five-point lead, but Lakshya refused to give in. He fought his way back to level the score at 19-19 before taking the next two points to complete an 11-21, 21-5, 21-19 victory.

With India leading 1-0, the pressure shifted to the doubles court. Satwik and Chirag faced Japan’s world No. 9 pair Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi, former world champions, in a closely fought contest.

The Indian pair secured the opening game 21-18 before the second turned into a tense battle. Japan saved three match points and levelled the score at 20-20, but Satwik and Chirag remained composed to close out the game 24-22 and give India a 2-0 lead.

Ayush was then handed the opportunity to seal the tie and delivered with authority against Watanabe.

The Indian youngster took charge from the opening points and won the first game 21-10. Watanabe attempted to fight back in the second, but Ayush maintained his composure and led 11-5 at the interval before completing a 21-10, 21-19 victory.

The 3-0 win sent India into the semifinals and guaranteed the team at least a bronze medal.

India had earlier opened its Asian Games campaign with a 3-0 victory over Bangladesh in the round of 16. The Indian team will now face the winner of the quarterfinal between China and South Korea in the semifinal on Wednesday.

The result also gives India an opportunity to improve on its performance from the previous edition, where the men’s team claimed a silver medal after losing the final to China.

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