India at 2024 Olympics, Day 1 as it happened: Manu Bhaker in 10m pistol final; Satwik-Chirag win

That’s it for Scroll’s coverage of Day 1 of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games!

What an eventful day it has been! There were some hits, and some brutal misses.

Sarabjot Singh, by the narrowest of margins, missed out on making it to the final of the men’s 10m air pistol event. But Manu Bhaker has risen from the ashes of the Tokyo debacle to storm into the women’s 10m air pistol final – she will compete for the medal tomorrow.

In badminton, Lakshya Sen and the men’s doubles team of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty marched onto impressive wins, but Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa were dealt a heavy defeat in the women’s doubles event.

Meanwhile, the Indian men’s hockey team came up with a late winner in an entertaining and nervy 3-2 win over New Zealand.

Tomorrow promises to be another big day in the Olympic Games for the Indians. The swimmers will be in action, and so will the likes of Achanta Sharath Kamal, PV Sindhu, Nikhat Zareen and more.

There are also medals up for grabs with Bhaker competing for a podium place, and women’s archery team, Ankita Bhakat, Deepika Kumari and Bhajan Kaur.

Join us once again for all the live action from Paris.

Badminton, women's doubles: Unable to handle the drift from near end of the court, Ponnappa and Crasto surrender the second game tamely at 10-21.

The Indians lose their first match of Group C 18-21, 10-21 in straight games.

Swimming, women's 400m freestyle: Ariarne Titmus defends her crown with a timing of 3:57.49s. Canada's 17-year-old Summer McIntosh takes silver ahead of USA's Katie Ledecky.

Swimming, women's 400m freestyle: The most anticipated swimming event is upon us. Katie Ledecky, arguably the best ever swimmer in the event, goes up against reigning champion Ariarne Titmus, the young Canadian sensation Summer McIntosh, and world champion Erika Fairweather. This will be blockbuster stuff...

Badminton, women's doubles: Ponnappa and Crasto show shades of brilliance, but eventually fall short 18-21 in the opening game against Kim and Kong. The Indians trailed for most part of the game, but displayed some good fightback in the latter stages.

Boxing, women's 54kg Round of 32: Preeti Pawar takes the win and advances to the Round of 16. She defeats the Vietnamese by a 5:0 unanimous decision. Anh threw more punches but Preeti has thrown the more impactful ones. Some lovely back hands from the Indian.

Boxing, women's 54kg Round of 32: A much better performance from Preeti this round as she takes it on all five cards. She has left Anh guessing on the backfoot and managed to defend at least two uppercuts. Like we anticipated, this is going down the wire.

Boxing, women's 54kg Round of 32: The six-time Vietnamese boxing champion leads the first round on three cards. Preeti has looked busy but Anh has managed to land clean punches. A close bout since the start... this could go down to the wire.

Badminton, women's doubles: The Koreans pull ahead, as expected, but Ponnappa and Crasto have done well to stay within a touching distance. The Indians trial 8-11 at the mid-game interval.

Badminton, women's doubles: Olympic veteran Ashwini Ponnappa and her debutant partner Tanisha Crasto are out in the middle. They are up against fourth seeds Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong of South Korea. Can the Indians pull off an upset?

Rugby Sevens: France win their first gold medal of the 2024 Paris Olympics! And it comes in a sport the French team had failed to qualify for in the Tokyo Olympics. In the final, they have beaten two-time defending champions Fiji 28-7

Boxing, women's 54kg Round of 32: India starts its boxing campaign shortly as Preeti Pawar takes on Thi Kim Anh Vo of Vietnam. Preeti is not a big name in the circuit but she can spring up a surprise. Her campaign at the Asian Games is an example. Can she keep up with that reputation this time too?

Men’s hockey, India 3-2 New Zealand, Q4: Not the ideal start to their campaign but Harmanpreet Singh and Co will take it. New Zealand were always going to be a tricky team to beat and they made India sweat for the win. Both sides had their goalkeepers in PR Sreejesh and Dom Dixon to thank for their superb saves. New Zealand have a case against India’s second goal scored by Vivek Sagar Prasad which looked like it had not fully crossed the line. India won’t care. Three points in the bag and on to Argentina next.

Men’s hockey, India 3-2 New Zealand, Q4: Penalty stroke for India and this time the call stays! Harmanpreet Singh steps up and authoritatively dispatches the ball just past the diving Dixon! India lead late on!

Men’s hockey, India 2-2 New Zealand, Q4: Penalty stroke for Indian but it is reversed! Child stopped the ball illegally on the line but the Polish umpire says that the ball was going away from goal and we have another PC.

Men’s hockey, India 2-2 New Zealand, Q4: With 132 second left, India finally find a way past the Kiwi press and win a PC after some good work by Sukhjeet Singh. Can Harmanpreet come up with a winner?

Men’s hockey, India 2-2 New Zealand, Q4: India lose their referral. Inglis intercepted Hardik’s free hit before New Zealand counter in huge numbers. Manpreet reviews saying that Inglis was not five metres away from Hardik when the free hit was taken. The TV umpire disagrees and Indian lose their referral. Three minutes left for either side to get a winner.

Men’s hockey, India 2-2 New Zealand, Q4: New Zealand are level! At the fourth time of asking, the Black Sticks finally score from the PC! They bring out a routine from the playbook with the injection going to Russell Kane on the second battery who reverses it back to Lane. He slaps the ball goalwards and Rohidas gets a stick on it which forces Sreejesh to change directions quickly. Child squirts the ball from under Sreejesh and the ball trickles over the line.

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q4: Chance for New Zealand to hit back as Rohidas gives away a PC. Oh but Child makes a mess of his injection with Rohidas pouncing on the loose ball. New Zealand win the ball back and get another PC.

Badminton, women's doubles: The clash between India's Ashwini Ponnappa-Tanisha Crasto and South Korea's Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong is scheduled to start not before 11:50pm IST. Long night ahead...

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q4: Dixon with another good save to keep his team in the contest! India win a PC with Rohidas on drag flick duty. He went high and just to Dixon’s left. The Kiwi keeper was quick to put out his glove and palm it away!

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q4: Dixon and Sreejesh have put up a goalkeeping masterclass today! Prasad found Sukhjeet in a good position in the circle and the forward fired it at goal! It was destined for goal only for Dixon to pull out a diving save!

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q3: A frantic third quarter comes to an end with New Zealand pressing for the equaliser. Sreejesh, like he has done before, keeps them at bay.

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q3: Gurjant Singh gives away a needless penalty corner with a foul on Sean Findlay much to Fulton’s displeasure. Sreejesh pulls off a stunning save down low to keep out Lane’s attempt! What a save from the Great Wall of India!

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q3: The Black Sticks try to respond immediately and win a PC. Good rushing by Rohidas as the Kiwis are re-awarded the PC three more times. Sreejesh finally ends the PC spell with a superb reaction save near his face.

Men’s hockey, India 2-1 New Zealand, Q3: Vivek Sagar Prasad bundles the ball into goal but will it stand? Dixon made a couple of good saves off Mandeep before Prasad smashed the ball at goal only for Dixon to save it with his helmet at close range. Umpire Madden Martin goes upstairs to check if the goal was fair. Oh and the replays show that Blair Tarrant might have just pulled the ball back off the line! The goal is likely to be disallowed… but wait! TV umpire Hannah Harrison does not believe she has enough evidence to overturn the on field decision and tells Martin to stay with his call! India lead!

Men’s hockey, India 1-1 New Zealand, Q3: Superb goalkeeping from Dixon to deny India the lead! Mandeep Singh found himself in acres of space inside the circle and smashed the ball at goal. Dixon saved it. Sukhjeet and Raj Kumar Pal were the first to react to the loose ball only for Dixon to save Paal’s shot. Nice double save from the Kiwi shot stopper.

Men’s hockey, India 1-1 New Zealand, HT: India end the first half on the front foot. With 30 seconds left, Hugo Inglis gets a green card for a heavy tackle on Manpreet Singh. India try to quickly press home the advantage but Hardik Singh’s effort cannot be deflected on to goal by Sukhjeet. The hooter goes off to signal the end of the half. Coach Craig Fulton will be happy with how his team bounced back towards the end of the half.

Men’s hockey, India 1-1 New Zealand, Q2: Mandeep Singh scores! Harmanpreet’s drag flick from a re-award, was saved by Dixon with his boot. Child, who had made a save on the line from the previous PC, looks to clear it once again but comes stuck against Dixon’s boot. Mandeep charges in and pokes the ball off the two Kiwis into the top corner. Child reviews stating that Mandeep committed a foul but the TV umpire finds no reason to disallow the goal. Game on!

Table Tennis, mixed doubles: Major upset in Paris as second seeds Tomokazu Harimoto and Hina Hayata of Japan go down 5-11, 11-7, 4-11, 13-15, 10-12 to North Koreans Ri Jong Sik/and Kim Kum Yong.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q2: Good work from Sanjay to win India their first penalty corner of the match. There is a long delay as goalkeeper Dominic Dixon needs some help with his boots which is finally patched up with ye old scotch tape.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q2: Excellent defending from Amit Rohidas to end the Kiwi counter. Indian lose possession high up and the Kiwis stream ahead to hit on the counter. It’s a 2v1 situation but Rohidas reads the play superbly to intercept Jake Smith’s pass.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q2: India guilty of misplacing their passes more often than they should be. The Kiwi players are closing down passing lanes quicker and even diving around to intercept passes. India need to be more clinical.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q2: An absurd start to the second quarter as New Zealand send out 12 players out. Captain Nic Woods is shown the yellow card and India will have the numerical advantage for five minutes.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q1: How did India not score there?! Mandeep Singh launched the counter for India with the ball played to Manpreet who smashes a cross in from the left. The ball evaded Sukhjeet Singh and Abhishek and went behind Shamsher Singh who could only deflect the ball to the right wing. New Zealand defend their lead as the hooter goes off for the end of the first quarter.

Tennis, men’s doubles: And it’s official. Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji will have to wait another day to face their French opponents Gael Monfils and Edouard Roger-Vasselin as all remaining matches in Roland Garros have been cancelled because of rain.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q1: Things nearly go from bad to worse for India. Gurjant Singh is shown the green card for a silly foul and India are down to 10 players for two minutes. New Zealand press their numerical advantage and nearly double their advantage but Simon Child misses a good chance to score.

Men’s hockey, India 0-1 New Zealand, Q1: Sam Lane gives the Black Sticks the lead! Vivek Sagar Prasad unlucky to give away a penalty corner. Sam Lane makes the most of the mistake and arrows his drag-flick past Sreejesh’s right foot before the Indian keeper had the chance to react. A goal against the run of play for New Zealand.

Men’s hockey, India 0-0 New Zealand, Q1: India come close to taking the lead twice inside a minute. Manpreet Singh’s high ball finds Sanjay on the right channel. The full back flicks the ball at goal. Sukhjeet Singh is positioned right in front of keeper Nic Woods and should have gotten a touch to deflect it into goal. Abhishek steals the ball on the 23m line and storms into the circle before firing it at goal but Woods makes a good save.

Men’s hockey, India 0-0 New Zealand, Q1: India a bit loose on the ball in the opening stages. Harmanpreet gets away with passing the ball straight to a Kiwi player. A minute later, Hardik Singh loses the ball cheaply and New Zealand counter attack but Hayden Phillips loses the ball.

Men’s hockey, India 0-0 New Zealand, Q1: On paper, India are favourites to win this tie. But as Manpreet Singh told Scroll before leaving for Paris, at Olympics, teams perform at 110% and any team can beat any one. India only need to look back at the World Cup to know that they cannot take New Zealand lightly. India get us started in the match.

Men’s hockey: Lovely nod to the Parisian theatre culture at the Yves-du-Manoir. A heavy stick is thumped on the floor thrice to signal the start of any show in Parisian theatres. The organisers have brought out former French players to carry out the tradition here as well.

Badminton, men's doubles: As easy as they would have hoped for. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty go past France's Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar 21-18, 21-14 in straight games.

Men’s hockey: Three years after ending a 41-year wait for another Olympic medal, the Indian men’s team embark on a new mission this time around in Paris — finish on top of the podium. That journey begins today against New Zealand. The Black Sticks broke Indian hearts just over a year ago when they beat India in the crossover stage at the World Cup in Odisha. India will not be taking New Zealand lightly and will be eager to get the job done without any nervy moments.

Badminton, men's doubles: Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar continue to pose questions to the Indians, but Satwik-Chirag are not really in trouble. Calm and composure from the third seeds as they lead 11-8 at the second mid-game interval.

Badminton, men's doubles: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty hold on to their lead to pocket the opening game 21-17 against Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar. Not flawless from the Indians, and coach Mathias Boe feels they are sitting back too much. He wants Satwik-Chirag to attack more.

Badminton, men's doubles: A slow start to get things underway from Satwik/Chirag, but they have grown in confidence with each passing rally. They lead 11-6 at the mid-game interval.

Badminton, men's doubles: Lakshya Sen done...Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty up next. The third seeded doubles pair are out on the court for their clash against last-minute entrants Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar.

Badminton, men's singles: Lakshya Sen....take a bow! He trailed 6-11 at the mid-game interval, was then down 10-16 and had to save four game points at 16-20. But, the Indian remains unfazed. He goes on a six-point spree to close off the second game 22-20.

Sen starts his campaign with a 21-8, 22-20 against Kevin Cordon in 42 minutes.

Table Tennis, men’s singles: Easy as you like it for Harmeet Desai. The Indian did not need to kick it up a notch even though Zaid Abo Yaman began strongly. After he lost the first two games, the fight was out of the Jordanian as Desai cruised to a 11-7, 11-9, 11-5, 11-5 win. Desai is rewarded with a round of 64 match against third seed 17-year-old Frenchman Felix Lebrun.

Table Tennis, men’s singles: The fight has gone out of Abo Yaman in the third game as Desai races to an 8-3 lead. The Jordanian has a resigned look on his face and Desai closes out the third game 11-5.

Badminton, men's singles: Good turnaround this from Kevin Cordon. With Lakshya Sen struggling to counter the drift from the near end of the court, the Gautemalan has taken an 11-6 five-point lead at the mid-game interval. Sen is not making it easy for Cordon, but the Indian might need a huge fightback to wrap this up in straight games.

Table Tennis, men’s singles: Abo Yaman taking the fight to Desai now. He trailed 0-3 but clawed his way back to level the game at 5-5. But his errors are not helping him and he knows it as he looks at his coach in frustration after a few shots just missed the edge of the table. He still fights back to make it 9-8 and 10-9. Desai holds his nerves to win the game 11-9.

Badminton, men's singles: Change of ends brings in change of fortunes for Kevin Cordon. He is calling the shots now and leads 6-2 in the second game. Lakshya Sen seems to be battling with the drift, but is holding on.

Table Tennis, men’s singles: Abo Yaman did not make it easy for Desai but the Indian nonetheless takes the first game 11-7. Some good point construction from the Indian once he got his bearing after Yaman’s strong start.

Badminton, men's singles: The #SenMode is well and truly on in Paris. Sen pushes Cordon all across the court and makes him work hard for each point. The left-handed shuttler can't keep up. Sen pockets the first game 21-8 without breaking a sweat.

Table Tennis, men’s singles: India’s table tennis campaign gets underway with Harmeet Desai the first to take to the table in Paris in the men’s preliminary round. It should be a straightforward contest for world No 86 Desai with his opponent, Jordan’s Zaid Abo Yaman ranked 538 in the world.

Badminton, men's singles: As expected, Sen is calling the shots in the early passage of play. He opened up a 5-0 lead before Cordon pulled one back. He has not allowed the Gautemalan any easy points and enjoys a massive 11-2 advantage at the first mid-game break.

Badminton, men's singles: An Olympic debutant versus a five-time veteran. Lakshya Sen vs Kevin Cordon. The Indian is out at the La Chapelle Arena for his Group L clash against the 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medallist.

Swimming: The great women’s 400m freestyle battle will get underway post midnight with a four-way battle between American legend Katie Ledecky, defending champion Ariarne Titmus of Australia, current world champion Erika Fairweather, and Canadian phenomenon Summer McIntosh.

At Tokyo 2020, the Australian stunned everybody by beating Ledecky to the gold medal. Titmus followed that up with a brilliant performance at the 2023 World Aquatic Championships and set a new world record of 3:55.38 with Ledecky currently holding the Olympic record of 3:56.46.

Both swimmers competed in the same heat, with Titmus leading through the first 300m before Ledecky won by the distance of a fingertip. In the other heat, Fairweather, from New Zealand, pipped McIntosh by 0.10 seconds to finish first, and third overall.

The Indian badminton contingent will kick off their group stage campaign in a little bit while Harmeet Desai is the lone Indian paddler in action today.

Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji will also be in action, facing Gael Monfils and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the men’s doubles event on Court 12.

As we wait for action to continue, read how Bhaker revived her qualification round to reach the women’s 10m air pistol final here.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Finally something good in shooting for India! Manu Bhaker makes it through to the final, finishing third in the qualification stage with a total score of 580.

Meanwhile Rhythm Sangwan bows out from the women's individual event, finishing in 15th place with a score of 573.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Slight falter there by Manu Bhaker with an 8 on her third shot in the fourth set, but she recovers well to score 96 in the fifth set. Rhythm Sangwan scores 95 with one set to go.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Slight dip from Manu Bhaker in the fourth set, as she scores 96, but is still well in contention of making it to the final. Rhythm Sangwan meanwhile is in 15th place after scoring 96 in the fourth round.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Sangwan with a decent comeback after the forgetful second set. She scores 97 in the third set, but has a lot of catching up to do with 30 shots to go.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Manu Bhaker has already finished her third series, notching up a solid score of 98. She looks a firm favourite to make it to the final.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Manu Bhaker continues to shoot well, scoring another 97 in the second set. Rhytham Sangwam meanwhile has dropped the pace a bit, hitting six 9s and one 8 in the second set that saw her score 92.

Still a lot of action to come today

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: Decent start from the Indians, as Manu Bhaker and Rhythm Sangwan score 97 each in the first set. Still a long way to go in this qualification round.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: 45 athletes will be competing in the qualification event, with only the top 8 making it to the final. Each shooter will shoot through six sets of 10 shots each. Manu Bhaker and Rhythm Sangwan will be competing in this event.

Shooting, women's 10m air pistol qualification: One more shooting event left for today, as Manu Bhaker and Rhythm Sangwan compete in the qualification event in the women's 10m air pistol event.

Will there be something positive for Team India to take out of the sport today?

Tennis, men's doubles: Timing update – Bopanna and Balaji's match against the French team has been delayed. They are scheduled to play second on court 12 at Roland Garros. Match may take place after 6.30 pm IST

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: The disappointment continues for India in shooting. Sarabjot Singh and Arjun Cheema fail to make it to the final in the air pistol individual event.

Singh was agonizingly close though, having been tied with the 8th placed shooter Robin Walter of Germany with 577 points. But Singh had hit only 16 inner 10s compared to Walter's 17.

Cheema meanwhile, finished in 18th placed with a score of 574 over the course of 60 shots.

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: Sarabjot Singh has dropped significantly after that perfect 100. He scored 93 in the fifth set and has gone down to 12th place from the third spot he had reached. Meanwhile Arjun Singh Cheema also scored a 93 in his fifth round.

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: Sarabjot Singh scores a perfect 100 in the fourth round and storms into finals contention. Arjun Cheema, hitting a seven on his second shot, scored a 94.

The first medallists of the Paris Olympics have been decided! And it’s China that takes the gold in the 10m air rifle mixed team event, with South Korea winning the silver and Kazakhstan taking the bronze.

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: Another strong showing from Arjun Cheema, scoring 97 while Sarabjot Singh scored 96. The Indians are clawing their way back into this qualification round.

Tennis, men's doubles: India's Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji were to take on the French team of Fabien Reboul and Edouard Roger-Vasselin. But Reboul has pulled out and has now been replaced by Gael Monfils. The match is expected to start at 3.30pm.

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: Arjun Cheema and Sarabjot Singh do a tad better in the second set, scoring identical scores of 97. Cheema is not far off the top 8 at the moment.

Shooting, men's 10m air pistol qualification: Arjun Singh Cheema score 96 in his first set of shots while Sarabjot Singh scored 94. Both Indians are a bit off the top 8 at the moment.

Correction: In the men’s 10m air pistol qualification, each competitor shouts in six sets of 10 shots each. The top 8 then make it to the final.

Shooting, men’s 10m air pistol qualification: Action resumes in shooting with Arjun Singh Cheema and Sarabjot Singh representing India. In the qualification stage, each of the 33 competitors shoot 10 shots each in six sets. The top 8 shooters will go into tomorrow's final.

Shooting: We will be back for more shooting action shortly, as Arjun Cheema and Sarabjot Singh begin their campaign in the men's 10m air pistol qualification

Shooting, 10m air rifle mixed qualification: Things haven’t gone the right way for either of the Indian pairs. The duo of Ramita Jindal and Arjun Babuta finish sixth overall while Elavenil Valarivan and Sandeep Singh finish twelfth. It needed a Top 4 finish and while Jindal and Babuta came close with a total score of 628.7, the cutoff to make it to the medal rounds was 629.7, shot by the fourth-placed German team.

Valarivan and Singh scored 626.3.

Shooting, 10m air rifle mixed qualification: The team of Elavenil Valarivan and Sandeep Singh improved on their first set score of 207.5 to score 210.0 in the second. But Ramita Jindal and Arjun Babuta are in a stronger position, scoring 210.6 in the second set along with 208.7 in the first.

Shooting, 10m air rifle mixed qualification: Ramita Jindal and Arjun Babuta scored a total of 208.7 in the first set but will have to do much better to catch up to the field, as they are not close to being in the top 4 at the end of the first set. Meanwhile, Elavenil Valarivan and Sandeep Singh are trailing further, with 207.5.

Rowing, Men's single sculls heats: Balraj Kanwar finishes fourth in the men's single sculls heats and will now move into the repechage round. He clocked a time of 7:07.11 mins, just short of Egypt's Abdelkhalek Elbanna at 7:05.06, who took the last quarter-final spot from the first heat.

Shooting, 10m air rifle mixed qualification: There are 28 teams competing, including the two from India - Sandeep Singh with Elavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta with Ramita Jindal. Each shooter will shoot in three series of 10 shots each. Eventually, the top four teams move into the medal round, with the teams placed one and two will go into the gold medal match while teams ranked three and four will fight for the bronze.

ALSO READ

In the build up to the mega event in Paris, Scroll looks at the eight different Olympic disciplines where Indians have returned with a medal.

Athletics: Neeraj Chopra India’s best bet, but don’t forget Avinash Sable in Paris

Badminton: Satwik-Chirag India’s favourites for podium; Chinese hurdle for PV Sindhu

Boxing: Nikhat, Lovlina shoulder hopes but pressure on male boxers mounts

Hockey: Harmanpreet & Co have tough task in Paris, but podium finish not impossible

Shooting: Manu Bhaker and Co hope to bury Tokyo ghosts in Paris

Tennis: Rohan Bopanna and Sriram Balaji lead charge; Sumit Nagal ready to run on clay

Weightlifting: Resilient Mirabai Chanu expected to shine after injury-plagued year

Wrestling: Indian grapplers aim to kickstart new era in Paris

Samreen Razzaqui: The campaign for Indian boxers starts later tonight. Young Preeti Pawar will face Vietnam’s Vo Thi Kim Anh in the women's 54kg Round of 32 bout. Although Pawar is not considered a major threat in comparison to the other Indian female boxers travelling to Paris, she has gained a reputation for causing upsets. She secured her spot in Paris by defeating three-time world championships medallist and two-time Asian champion Zhaina Shekerbekova of Kazakhstan in the 54kg quarterfinals at the 2023 Asian Games, guaranteeing herself a bronze medal.

ALSO READ: Boxing, Olympics 2024: Nikhat, Lovlina shoulder hopes but pressure on male boxers mounts

Tanya Kini: The Indian men’s hockey team will begin their campaign for yet another Olympic medal when they take on New Zealand in their first match of Group B which also features reigning Olympic champions Belgium and Tokyo 2020 silver medallists Australia. There’s also a bit of revenge to be taken after New Zealand knocked the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallists out of the 2023 World Cup in the crossover stage.

Led by able drag-flicker and defender Harmanpreet Singh, the Indian team will look to veterans like Jarmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh and PR Sreejesh to help them get past the Black Sticks and earn a valuable two points.

Also read: Harmanpreet & Co have tough task in Paris, but podium finish not impossible

Abhijit Nair: India will kickstart their badminton campaign today with an aim to keep their medal winning streak in the sport at the Olympics alive. Men’s singles star Lakshya Sen will be the first Indian shuttler in action, up against the 2020 Tokyo Olympics semi-finallist Kevin Cordon. He will be followed by the former world No 1 men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty. The badminton action for the day will round off with the pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto going up against fourth seeds Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong of South Korea in the women’s doubles.

ALSO READ: Satwik-Chirag India’s favourites for podium; Chinese hurdle for PV Sindhu

Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji will begin their campaign in the men’s doubles event today. They take on the French duo of Fabien Reboul and Edouard Roger-Vasselin at Roland Garros, the same venue where the French Open is held.

ALSO READ: Rohan Bopanna and Sriram Balaji lead charge; Sumit Nagal ready to run on clay

The Indian contingent was led by flag bearers PV Sindhu and Achanta Sharath Kamal on the glittering Opening Ceremony along the River Seine last night.

In photos: Olympics 2024 Opening Ceremony – Lady Gaga, Eiffel Tower, a memorable boat parade

The Indian shooting contingent will be the first in action from the country on Day 1 of the Olympics, and this will also be the first medal available for the Indians, with both the qualification and medal rounds taking place today.

Sandeep Singh and Elavenil Valarivan will pair up while Arjun Babuta and Ramita Jindal will form the second Indian team in the 10m mixed rifle events.

Later on, Arjun Cheema and Sarabjot Singh will compete in the men’s 10m air pistol qualification round. Manu Bhaker and Rhythm Sangwan will also be in action in the women’s 10m air pistol qualification round.

ALSO READ: Manu Bhaker and Co hope to bury Tokyo ghosts in Paris

Hello and welcome to Scroll’s coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games!

After a glittering opening ceremony last night which had its share of ups and downs, the Paris Olympics are officially open. The evening on Seine however was marred by “coordinated attacks” on France’s rail network ahead of the opening ceremony, but the ceremony itself was not in any harm’s way.

The teams of Sandeep Singh/Elavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta/Ramita Jindal will be in action in the 10m air rifle mixed team event. If they finish in the top four, they will have a chance to begin India’s campaign in Paris with multiple medals.

It is an action-packed day in racquet sports with the Indian badminton, tennis and table tennis campaigns getting underway.

Later in the day, even the Indian men’s hockey team will open their campaign against New Zealand, while Preeti Pawar will be the lone boxer from the country in action on the opening day.

Screenshots in blog courtesy Jio Cinema and 2024 Paris Olympics website.