Aichi-Nagoya [Japan], September 20 : Indian wushu athlete Vikrant Baliyan bowed out of the men’s 75kg Sanda competition after losing 0-2 to Iran’s Soheil Mousavi in the Round of 16 at the Asian Games 2026 on Sunday.
Mousavi dominated both rounds, winning them 5-0 to advance to the quarterfinals and bring India’s wushu campaign in Sanda to a close.
Earlier in the day, Aparna Dahiya also suffered a Round of 16 exit, losing 0-2 to Iran’s Sogand Sinkaeichetan in the women’s 52kg Sanda event. Sinkaeichetan won both rounds 5-0.
Aparna had entered the competition after winning gold at the 11th Sanda World Cup in Macau in May. She defeated reigning world champion Thi Phuong Nga Ngo of Vietnam in straight sets to secure India’s first gold at the event.
In the men’s Changquan event, Suraj Singh Mayanglambam finished 11th in the final.
India’s opening day at the Asian Games featured medals and strong performances across several disciplines.
In shooting, Elavenil Valarivan won silver in the women’s 10m air rifle individual final and teamed up with Sonam Maskar and Vidarsa Vinod to claim another silver in the team event.
In mixed martial arts, Suchika Tariyal secured a medal after defeating Mongolia’s Altanchimeg Baigalmaa in the women’s traditional 60kg quarterfinal.
India registered convincing wins in hockey, with the women’s team beating Uzbekistan 19-0 in Pool B and the men defeating Indonesia 13-1 in Pool A.
The Indian women’s cricket team advanced to the final after defeating Bangladesh in the semifinal.
In table tennis, India’s men’s and women’s teams defeated Indonesia 3-0 in their Group F matches, while the women also edged Singapore 3-2.
India’s women’s badminton team began its campaign with a 3-0 win over Kazakhstan.
In swimming, Rishabh Das qualified for the men’s 100m backstroke final after finishing fifth in the heats and later placed sixth in the final. Benediction Beniston and Akash Mani finished 12th and 23rd, respectively, in the men’s 100m freestyle heats.
In teqball, Quimcy Dsouza lost the women’s singles bronze-medal match, while Dsouza and Mohamed Anas Beg were defeated in the mixed doubles bronze-medal contest.
The India-Iran table tennis tie was the final event involving Indian athletes on the opening day, where India suffered 0-3 defeat.