Asian Games: Sumit Nagal key as Yuki Bhambri injury clouds India’s tennis campaign

India’s tennis campaign at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games will look different from the one that produced two medals in Hangzhou. The seven-member contingent features experience in men’s singles and doubles, but India will have no women’s singles entry after five players were left out of the final squad following a selection row.

The campaign has also been clouded by uncertainty over Yuki Bhambri. India’s top-ranked doubles player has been ruled out of the Davis Cup tie against South Korea after suffering a thigh injury around the US Open. He had been hopeful of recovering in time for the Asian Games, but his latest setback has put his participation in Japan in doubt.

The 2026 Asian Games will be held from September 19 to October 4, with Sumit Nagal leading India’s singles challenge alongside Dhakshineswar Suresh. Bhambri, Sriram Balaji, Anirudh Chandrasekar, Ankita Raina and Rutuja Bhosale make up the doubles contingent.

SUMIT NAGAL LEADS INDIA’S CHALLENGE

Nagal is India’s sole entry in men’s singles and remains the country’s highest-ranked player in the event. The 29-year-old reached a career-high No.68 in July 2024 and has represented India regularly in the Davis Cup since 2018.

Dhakshineswar Suresh is the other singles player in the squad. He has career-high ATP rankings of No.462 in singles and No.352 in doubles, and impressed in the 2026 Davis Cup by winning both his singles matches against the Netherlands.

Bhambri is the most accomplished doubles player in the squad, having reached a career-high No.18 in February 2026. He was scheduled to partner Suresh, with Chandrasekar and Balaji forming the other men’s doubles pair.

His injury has now put that combination in doubt. Davis Cup captain Rohit Rajpal confirmed Bhambri would miss the South Korea tie, leaving his Asian Games participation uncertain.

Balaji reached a career-high No.60 in doubles in 2025, while Chandrasekar has also established himself on the circuit, spending time inside the ATP top 100 this season.

In women’s doubles, Raina and Bhosale will combine. Raina has a career-high doubles ranking of No.93, while Bhosale returns to the Asian Games as the reigning mixed doubles champion, having won gold with Rohan Bopanna in Hangzhou.

INDIA’S ASIAN GAMES RECORD

Tennis has been part of the Asian Games since 1958, with India winning its first medal in the sport in 1966. The country has since collected 34 tennis medals — 10 gold, seven silver and 17 bronze.

India added two medals at Hangzhou in 2023. Bopanna and Bhosale won mixed doubles gold, while Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan took silver in men’s doubles. Nagal and Ankita Raina both reached the singles quarter-finals.

The doubles success provides a strong reference point for the Aichi-Nagoya campaign, although Bhambri’s fitness could have a significant bearing on the men’s doubles combinations.

THE SELECTION CONTROVERSY

India’s squad selection has been another major talking point. AITA initially proposed a 12-member contingent, but the final government-approved squad was reduced to seven, leaving out Manas Dhamne, Vaishnavi Adkar, Sahaja Yamalapalli, Vaidehee Chaudhari and Prarthana Thombare.

Yamalapalli was India’s No.1 women’s singles player at the time and ranked 344 in the WTA standings, while Adkar was also among the country’s leading women’s singles players. Their exclusion means India will have no representative in the women’s singles draw.

The Sports Ministry’s selection framework, introduced in 2025, prioritises athletes considered to have a realistic medal opportunity at multi-sport events. An SAI source said the five excluded players did not meet the prescribed continental ranking criteria. AITA disputed the account and asked the Indian Olympic Association to reconsider the exclusions.

Bopanna, a two-time Asian Games gold medallist, also questioned the changes, keeping the selection issue in focus ahead of the Games.

DOUBLES REMAIN CENTRAL TO INDIA’S CAMPAIGN

India’s doubles combinations bring considerable international and Asian Games experience. Balaji and Chandrasekar provide depth in the men’s draw, while Raina and Bhosale form an experienced women’s pairing.

Bhosale’s return as a reigning Asian Games champion adds further interest to the women’s doubles event. For the men, however, Bhambri’s status remains the key question.

Nagal will carry the singles challenge, while the absence of a women’s singles entry leaves India’s campaign heavily dependent on its doubles contingent. With Bhambri’s recovery still uncertain, the final shape of India’s tennis challenge will become clearer closer to the Aichi-Nagoya Games.

INDIA’S TENNIS SQUAD AT ASIAN GAMES 2026

Men’s Singles: Sumit Nagal

Doubles: Yuki Bhambri, N Sriram Balaji, Anirudh Chandrasekar, Dhakshineswar Suresh

Women’s

Doubles: Rutuja Bhosale, Ankita Raina

INDIA’S TENNIS MEDALLISTS AT ASIAN GAMES

1966 — Bangkok, Thailand

1978 — Bangkok, Thailand

1982 — New Delhi, India

1990 — Beijing, China

1994 — Hiroshima, Japan

• Gold: Leander Paes & Gaurav Natekar — Men’s doubles

• Gold: Leander Paes, Gaurav Natekar, Zeeshan Ali & Asif Ismail — Men’s team

• Bronze: Leander Paes — Men’s singles

1998 — Bangkok, Thailand

• Bronze: Mahesh Bhupathi — Men’s singles

• Bronze: Srinath Prahlad — Men’s singles

• Bronze: Mahesh Bhupathi, Syed Fazaluddin, Nitin Kirtane & Srinath Prahlad — Men’s team

• Bronze: Mahesh Bhupathi & Nirupama Vaidyanathan — Mixed doubles

2002 — Busan, South Korea

• Gold: Leander Paes & Mahesh Bhupathi — Men’s doubles

• Silver: Mahesh Bhupathi & Manisha Malhotra — Mixed doubles

• Bronze: Vishal Uppal & Mustafa Ghouse — Men’s doubles

• Bronze: Leander Paes & Sania Mirza — Mixed doubles

2006 — Doha, Qatar

• Gold: Leander Paes & Mahesh Bhupathi — Men’s doubles

• Gold: Leander Paes & Sania Mirza — Mixed doubles

• Silver: Ankita Bhambri, Isha Lakhani, Sania Mirza & Shikha Uberoi — Women’s team

2010 — Guangzhou, China

• Gold: Somdev Devvarman — Men’s singles

• Gold: Somdev Devvarman & Sanam Singh — Men’s doubles

• Silver: Sania Mirza & Vishnu Vardhan — Mixed doubles

• Bronze: Somdev Devvarman, Karan Rastogi, Sanam Singh & Vishnu Vardhan — Men’s team

• Bronze: Sania Mirza — Women’s singles

2014 — Incheon, South Korea

• Gold: Sania Mirza & Saketh Myneni — Mixed doubles

• Silver: Saketh Myneni & Sanam Singh — Men’s doubles

• Bronze: Yuki Bhambri & Divij Sharan — Men’s doubles

• Bronze: Sania Mirza & Prarthana Thombare — Women’s doubles

• Bronze: Yuki Bhambri — Men’s singles

2018 — Jakarta/Palembang, Indonesia

• Gold: Rohan Bopanna & Divij Sharan — Men’s doubles

• Bronze: Prajnesh Gunneswaran — Men’s singles

• Bronze: Ankita Raina — Women’s singles

2022 Asian Games — Hangzhou, China

TENNIS SCHEDULE FOR ASIAN GAMES 2026

September 27 to 30

• Men’s singles – preliminary rounds

• Men’s doubles – preliminary rounds

• Women’s doubles – preliminary rounds

October 1, Thursday

• Men’s singles – quarter-finals

• Men’s doubles – quarter-finals

• Women’s doubles – quarter-finals

October 2, Friday

• Men’s singles – semi-finals

• Men’s doubles – semi-finals

• Women’s doubles – semi-finals

October 3, Saturday

• Men’s singles – final

• Men’s doubles – final

• Women’s doubles – final

– Ends