Asian Games: Indian men''s badminton team settles for bronze after 1-3 loss to China
The Indian men's badminton team secured a bronze medal at the Asian Games after a 1-3 loss to China in the semifinals. Despite the loss, it marks the first time in 40 years that India has won back-to-back team medals at the event.
Why it matters
This result highlights the rising competitiveness of Indian badminton on the international stage.
Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty faltered against higher-ranked opponents as the Indian men's team signed off with a bronze medal after going down 1-3 to nemesis China in the semifinals of the Asian Games on Wednesday (September 23, 2026).
India had won the silver medal at the last edition in Hangzhou in 2023, where they had lost to China in the final.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were the only Indians to win a match as China once again got the better of India.
World No. 14 Lakshya, who had produced a stirring performance to take India to the semifinals, could not quite bring his A game, going down 16-21, 18-21 to world No. 6 Shi Yu Qi in the first singles as India fell 0-1 behind.
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