India’s men’s badminton team secured a bronze medal at the 2026 Asian Games after losing 1–3 to China in the semifinal at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Wednesday. The result ended India’s hopes of reaching the final, while also giving the team a second consecutive Asian Games medal in the men’s team event.
India entered the semifinal after defeating Japan 3–0 in the quarterfinal and securing a medal in the process. Against China, however, the Indian team managed one victory, with Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty winning their doubles match.
World No. 14 Lakshya Sen played the opening singles tie against China’s Shi Yu Qi. Sen fought through the contest but lost 16–21, 18–21, giving China an early 1–0 leadThe Chinese player, ranked sixth in the world, controlled key stages of the match and put India under pressure from the opening tie..
India responded through its leading men’s doubles combination of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.The Indian pair defeated reigning world champions Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang 21–11, 22–20. The victory brought India back into the contest and levelled the semifinal at 1–1.
The third match featured India’s Ayush Shetty against China’s Li Shi Feng.Shetty lost 19–21, 13–21, allowing China to regain the lead at 2–1. India then needed to win the second doubles match to keep its final hopes alive.
M.R. Arjun and Hariharan Amsakarunan took on China’s He Ji Ting and Liu Yi in the fourth match.The Indian pair won the second game after dropping the opener, but China controlled the deciding game and completed a 16–21, 21–17, 9–21 victory. The result gave China an overall 3–1 win and secured its place in the final.
Despite the semifinal defeat, the bronze medal marks an important milestone in India’s Asian Games badminton record. The team had won silver at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games and has now secured medals in consecutive editions.
Reports note that this is India’s first run of back-to-back Asian Games men’s team medals in 40 years, following bronze medals in 1982 and 1986.India’s campaign therefore ends with a bronze medal after wins against Japan in the quarterfinal and a 1–3 semifinal defeat against China.
The performance adds another Asian Games medal to India’s badminton record while China moves into the final.