GOLD: Rahi Sarnobat became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in shooting at the Asian Games. She won a thrilling women’s 25m air pistol final, edging out Thailand’s N Yangpaiboon after two shoot-offs.


08:30 pm: Wrapping up...

So that’s a wrap from us today... it’s an early close with all of India’s events completed. As always, plenty of drama, joy, and heartbreak on a not-so-action-packed day from an Indian perspective. Tomorrow is another day and it promises much. Join us then, nice and early. Adios till then!

08:27 pm: Greco-Roman wrestler Harpreet Singh loses bronze medal bout, India finish Asian Games campaign with three medals. On that note, here’s a quick poll for you.

07:56 pm: Wrestling action is now over. Two gold medals (one, a historic first for Vinesh Phogat) and one bronze. How would you rate India’s campaign? Let us know by tagging us on Twitter @thefield_in.

07:44 pm: On Tuesday, Asian Games history was created as the Indian men’s regu team won bronze in Sepak Takraw. What did you know about the sport and it’s popularity in India?

07:23 pm: A quick recap of the tennis action from the day. Four wins, but the defeat of Ramkumar in men’s singles will hurt. He was expected to go the distance at the Games.

07:14 pm: Some hockey reading for you, as we come to the end of day four for India.

07:08 pm: VOLLEYBALL - MEN’S

First defeat in the group stage for Indian men as they go down in straight sets to Qatar in their third match, 25-15, 25-20, 25-20. They are placed second in Pool F with one match left.

06:50 pm: So that’s four BRONZE MEDALS for India from Sanda, taking the overall tally to 15 with five medals on day four.

Roshibina Devi (Women’s 60 kg)
Santosh Kumar (Men’s 56kg)
Surya Singh (Men’s 60 kg)
Narender Grewal (Men’s 65 kg)

06:49 pm: Remember this man from Rio 2016?

06:45 pm: BRONZE MEDAL ALERT

Narender loses his semi-final 0-2. Iran’s Foroud Zafari was the comfortable winner. With this, the Indian interest in Wushu Sanda comes to an end with four bronze medals earned in Jakarta and Palembang.

06:40 pm: GYMNASTICS - Women’s team final

India, without the services of Dipa Karmakar, finish a creditable 7th in the team final. They improved on their floor routine score from the qualification rounds but in every other routine, the scores dropped, perhaps understandably.

China bag the gold, followed by North Korea and Japan.

Three Indians will be involved in the women’s individual finals (assuming Dipa can regain her fitness)

06:30 pm: WUSHU - BRONZE MEDAL ALERT

Surya Bhanu Pratap Singh (60 kg) loses 0-2 in the semifinal, after a brutal beating at the hands of Iran’s Erfan. In the first round, Surya seemed to have rolled his ankle and completed most of the bout in pain – limping around. The pain got so bad at the end that he could barely stand. But in a wonderful display of sportmanship, Erfan lifts Surya over to the sideline.

BEAUTY OF SPORT!

06:20 pm: WUSHU - BRONZE MEDAL ALERT

Santosh Kumar loses his semi-final bout 2-0 to Giang, never looked in contention. But once again, it’s a bronze medal for India!

06:18 pm: WRESTLING - HARPREET LOSES BRONZE MEDAL BOUT

After a poor start, Harpreet was aggressive in the second round but he loses 3-6. The Greco-Roman contingent will once again return from the Asian Games without a medal. The two gold medals notwithstanding, the overall performance of the wrestling contingent in the Asian Games hasn’t really been up to the mark.

06:15 pm: SWIMMING - FINAL

The Indian team of Aaron DSouza, Virdhawal Khade, Sajan Prakash and Anshul Kothari finished 8th with a timing of 3:25.34 seconds. Clocked 3:25.17 in the heats. Japan, who have been impressive in the pool, finish first with a new GAMES RECORD.

06:11 pm: WUSHU

Next up for India, is Santosh Kumar in the Men’s Sanda 56kg semi-finals. His opponent is from Vietnam.

06:10 pm: WRESTLING - BRONZE MEDAL BOUT

Coach Kuldeep has a word with Harpreet as he trails 0-5. Poor start from the Indian as his Kazakh opponent is three points away from victory.

06:09 pm: WRESTLING - BRONZE MEDAL BOUT

Harpreet Singh will look to get a rare Greco-Roman bronze medal at the Asian Games but he’s struggling in this bout to start with.

06:05 pm: Gymnastics update

With the final rotations underway, India have, unsurprisingly, slipped down. After a solid start in the first rotation, the uneven bars routine saw the Indians total 32.4 points. Balance Beam will be the final rotation.

06:03 pm: BRONZE MEDAL ALERT

17-year-old Roshibina Devi will finish with a bronze medal in Women’s Sanda 60kg.

Up against China’s Cai Yingying, Devi couldn’t assert herself despite starting well. The bout was called off before the end, with Devi struggling towards the end. Creditable bronze, though. Congratulations are in order!

05:57 pm: Wushu

Confusingly, India in red and China in blue for the first bout. Against the favourite, Roshibina has actually done well to hold her own but China given the first round.

05:52 pm: Wushu

Alright, time for the first of the four semifinals featuring India. Naorem in action first...

05:50 pm: Perfect day for Rohan Bopanna. After a win in the men’s doubles QF, he registers a win in mixed doubles round of 16 with Ankita Raina. One win away from ensuring he’ll return with two medals.

05:45 pm: Wushu

Having assured themselves of a medal, four Indians are in semi-final action later in the evening in Sanda. Stay tuned for updates.

05:40 pm: For Rahi Sarnobat, this historic GOLD medal must feel all the more special because of her injury troubles in the recent past. Know more about the first ever Indian woman shooter to win an Asian Games gold medal here.

05:30 pm: Gymnastics women’s team final

After the 2nd rotation for all teams, India have moved into the fifth position. Impressive showing so far, however, not the best of returns from their favourite routine - the vault. China and Korea are comfortably in the lead. Uneven bars up next for India...

5.10 pm: Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan (India’s last minute pairing) are out of medal contention in men’s doubles after losing their quarter-final match to Kazakhstan’s Bublik/Yevseyev 7-5, 4-6, 2-10.

Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare are out of women’s doubles as well, after a defeat in the round of 16. Not been the best of days for the Indian tennis contingent, overall.

5 pm: Gymnastics

India are placed sixth currently after the first rotation with a score of 34.150. China are on top with 41.450, with North Korea in second with 41.350.

4.35 pm: All right, it’s now time for the women’s team gymnastics final. India, who will be without the injured Dipa Karmakar, will start with the floor routines.

4.22 pm: Archery

India’s Abhishek Verma has finished the men’s compound individual ranking round in fourth position with a total score of 704. Aman Saini came in 16th with 704, Rajat Chauhan 18th with 691 and Sangampreet Singh 19th with 689.

India finished second in the compound men’s team ranking round behind Korea, who scored a Games record of 2116. India’s total score was 2087.

India’s ranking in the compound mixed team is also second with a score of 1409. Korea came first with a world record score of 1412.

3.55 pm: Congratulatory messages are pouring in for Rahi Sarnobat...

3.45 pm: India’s challenge in sepaktakraw came to an end on Tuesday at the hands of depending champions Thailand, but the team has made rapid strides in the recent past. The little-known sport exists in pockets of space across the country where its popularity rivals that of the other sports. Arka Bhatacharya gets you the lowdown on sepaktakraw here.

3.23 pm: Rahi Sarnobat has just received her gold medal. She wrapped the national flag around her as the national anthem started playing. Proud moment...

2.57 pm: Tennis

Men’s doubles top seeds Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan survive a brief scare, but progress to the semi-finals. That’s two medals confirmed from the tennis courts for India, after Ankita Raina.

2.45 pm: In case you’re just joining us, this just happened:

2.43 pm: Wrestling

India’s Hardeep also loses his 97 kg Greco Roman repechage round 2 match, against Uzbekistan’s Jahongir Turdiev 6-1. This means that Harpreet Singh, who will contest for bronze, is the only Indian wrestler alive in the competition.

2.39 pm: Wrestling

Gurpreet Singh misses out on a bronze after losing his repechage round 2 to China’s Yang Bin. The match was awarded to the Chinese when he was leading 9-1 because Gurpreet received three cautions for rule infringements.

2.34 pm: Meanwhile, the Indian men’s hockey team has beaten Hong Kong 26-0, which is the biggest win margin they have ever recorded. If you missed the match like I did, you can catch up on it here.

2.30 pm: Phew! What a final! Two shoot-offs to decide the gold medal but Rahi Sarnobat comes through in the end! She has become the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in shooting at the Asian Games!

2.28 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

The first shoot-off ends up in a tie! In the second, Rahi Sarnobat misses her last two shots, but Yangpaiboon misses three out of five and this means the gold goes to Rahi!

2.25 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Sarnobat and Yangpaiboon both end up with the same score after the end of the series, which means we move into a shoot-off!

2.23 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

For the first time in the final, Rahi Sarnobat slips down from the top spot after missing three shots in the eighth series! She is now second, two points behind Yangpaiboon. Korea’s N Kim gets the bronze medal.

2.18 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Rahi Sarnobat and N Yangpaiboon of Thailand will contest for the gold medal! Rahi currently leads by one point.

2.15 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

After a brilliant qualification round, Manu Bhaker has a shocker in the final, missing three more shots in the sixth series, which leads to her being eliminated. She comes fifth in this final. Rahi Sarnobat, however, is still going strong, with 25 out of 30.

2.12 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Rahi Sarnobat continues to be on top after the fifth series, with a score of 20 out of 25. Manu Bhaker has 14 out of 25 and is fighting to stay in contention.

2.11 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Rahi Sarnobat misses three targets in the final series of the first stage, but continues to maintain her top position. Manu too keeps her fifth position at the end of the stage. We have had our first elimination.

2.09 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

After 11 perfect shots, Rahi Sarnobat eventually misses one target. She still has 14 out of 15 after three series and remains on top of the table. Manu Bhaker misses three targets in the third series and continues to be fifth.

2.07 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Rahi Sarnobat stretches her perfect start to two series, hitting all of her first 10 targets. Manu Bhaker misses two more targets to be fifth.

2.04 pm: Women’s 25m pistol final

Rahi Sarnobat starts off with a perfect first series, hitting all five of her targets. She is the only shooter out of the eight finalists with a perfect score in the first series. Manu Bhaker misses two targets.

2.01 pm: Tennis

Prajnesh G holds his nerve to reach the men’s singles quarters. The Indian had to survive a rocky second set but managed to beat Ly Hoang Nam 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.

1.55 pm: Correction: It’s not Hardeep, but China’s Di Xiao who is awarded the Greco Roman 97 kg quarter-final bout that ended 3-3 because he had a two-point takedown, compared to the Indian’s three single points.

1.48 pm: The women’s 25m pistol final is moments away from beginning. Manu Bhaker and Rahi Sarnobat are among eight finalists.

1.42 pm: Men’s Greco-Roman 97 kg Wrestling

India’s Hardeep fights back from a 0-3 deficit at the end of the first period against China’s Di Xiao to level the scores 3-3 in the dying moments of the match and secure progress to the quarter-finals. Hardeep was trailing 2-3 with less than 20 seconds to go but managed to score a point before the hooter.

1.27 pm: Men’s 87 kg Greco-Roman Wrestling

It’s time for Harpreet’s semi-final...oh...while I type this...it has ended! Uzbekistan’s Rustam Assakalov needs just 38 seconds to accumulate an 8-0 lead and beat the Indian by technical superiority. Blink and you miss stuff, that. Harpreet will now contest for bronze.

1.18 pm: The Indian men’s hockey team has scored 14 goals in the first two quarters of their pool match against Hong Kong. Yup...

Hockey live blog here.

12.53 pm: Wrestling

Harpreet Singh needs less than two minutes to win his quarter-final bout against Japan’s Masato Sumi by technical superiority. Masato was given a passivity penalty and had to lie on his stomach. Harpreet managed to pick him up enough to roll him over and did that two more times to take his lead to 8-0, which won him the match.

12.50 pm: Wrestling

Gurpreet Singh loses a tight quarter-final match against Iran’s Mohammadali Geraei 6-8 and must now hope for repechage. Geraei won all 8 of his points in the first period, in which Gurpreet could only get 2 points. The Indian fought back well in the second period but could not overtake the Iranian.

12.45 pm: Meanwhile, the Indian men’s hockey team has struck five goals within the first 12 minutes of their match against Hong Kong. You can follow our hockey live blog here.

12.28 pm: Wrestling

Naveen loses his first-round Greco Roman 130 kg match against China’s Meng Lingzhe 1-4. Both wrestlers were very defensive throughout the bout and were penalised for passivity. Meng then pushed Naveen out of the fight zone to earn a lead of 2-1, but India challenged the call. The challenge was unsuccessful and the Chinese was awarded two points instead.

12.08 pm: Wrestling

India’s Gurpreet Singh scores a superb five-point takedown by hauling Thailand’s Natal Apichai off the ground in his Greco-Roman 77 kg match before winning the bout by technical superiority. Final score was 9-0 in favour of the Indian.

11.52 am: Meanwhile, there seems to be another controversy brewing within the Indian tennis camp:

11.50 am: Wrestling

India’s Harpreet Singh beats Korea’s Park Heageun 4-1 in their Greco-Roman 87 kg match to enter the quarter-finals.

Harpreet

11.12 am: Tennis

Huge upset in tennis as India’s Ramkumar Ramanathan, the second seed, has been knocked out in the round of 16 by Uzbekistan’s Karimov Jurabek. Ramkumar won the first set 6-3 but lost the next two 4-6 and 3-6.

11.08 am: Taekwondo

Navjeet Maan’s campaign comes to an end in the pre-quarters of the men’s -80 kg category, as he goes down to China’s Chen Linglong 6-20.

10.54 am: Archery

India’s Jyothi Surekha Vennam comes second in the ranking round of the women’s compound individual and misses the Games record by a single point. Her total score of 705 is one fewer than Chinese Taipei’s Chen Yihsuan, whose 706 is a Games record.

Muskan Kirar came 9th with 691, Madhumita Kumari was 11th with 689, while Trisha Deb was 19th with 683.

As a result, India are placed second in the compound women’s team ranking with a total score of 2085, Korea topped the chart with 2105 – a Games record.

10.42 am: Taekwondo

India’s Navjeet Mann has won his men’s -80 kg round of 32 match against Laos’s Phommavanh Somsanouk 32-18 to move on to the pre-quarters.

10.30 am: Meanwhile, an Indonesian couple have named their kid....wait for it...Asian Games! Yup. Well, it’s their daughter’s second name, thankfully. The baby’s full name is Abidah Asian Games. She was born in one of the host cities, Palembang, hours before the opening ceremony, her parents told AFP.

10.23 am: Wushu

India’s Gyandash Singh misses out on a medal by a whisker – 0.01 points to be exact – as he comes fourth in men’s Taijijian. His score of 9.70 was bettered – only just – by Myanmar’s Ko Ko Nyein Chan, who scored 9.71. China’s Chen Zhouli got the gold with 9.76, while Japan’s Tomohiro Araya won silver with 9.72.

Taijijian is a form of wushu where a competitor uses a sword as the main element of the routine.

10.17 am: Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification – Shooting

Heartbreak for Anjum Moudgil as she misses the cut for the final by one point. She was second in the qualification table after the kneeling and prone positions, but a poor standing round cost her in the end. Mongolia’s Nandinzaya Gankhuyag tops the table with a qualifying Games record.

10.15 am: Rowing

The Indian men’s lightweight eight team is through to the main A-final after topping the repechage round with a timing of 6:15.62.

10.08 am: Tennis

Another medal confirmed for India as Ankita Raina fights back from 0-3 down in the first set to beat Hong Kong’s Eudice Chong 6-4, 6-1 and reach the semis. She dominated her opponent after a shaky start.

10.05 am: Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification – Shooting

Anjum Moudgil has a poor standing round (93, 92, 93, and 95) and drops out of the top eight for the time being. She now awaits the other shooters’ results to find out whether she has made the cut for the final.

10 am: Women’s 25m pistol qualification – Shooting

Manu Bhaker shoots a qualifying Games record to bulldoze her way into the final. Her total score of 593 is eight points more than the next best, South Korea’s Kim Minjung, who got 585. India’s Rahi Sarnobat is also in the final after shooting 580.

9.45 am: Rowing

India have qualified for the main A-Final in Women’s Four after recording a time of 7:53.29 in the repechage. India’s timing was the fourth fastest in the repechage round. The Indian team comprises Sanjukta Dung Dung, Annu, Navneet Kaur, and Yamini Singh.

9.38 am: Badminton

The draw for the individual competition starting on Thursday is out.

Kidambi Srikanth and the in-form All England Open champion Shi Yuqi are drawn in the same quarter, while HS Prannoy could face Singapore Open winner Chou Tien Chien in pre-quarters of the men’s singles.

PV Sindhu could meet world junior champion Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in pre-quarters, while Saina Nehwal is in the same quarter as former world champion Ratchanok Intanon.

In men’s doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are in the same quarter as world No 4 Chinese pair of Liu Cheng and Zhang Nan, while Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy could meet world No 2 pair Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen in the second round.

In women’s doubles, Ashwini Ponnappa and Sikki Reddy are in the same quarter as world No 3 Chen Qingchen/Jia Yifan, while Arathi Sara Sunil and Rutaparna Panda could face world No 4 Greysia Polii/Apriyani Rahayu in the second round.

In mixed doubles, Satwik and Ashwini are in the same quarter as world No 4 pair Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet, while Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Sikki are in the same quarter as world No 3 Tontowi Ahmad/Liliyana Natsir.

9.30 am: Swimming

The Indian team just makes the cut for the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay final, finishing eighth fastest across all heats. China, Japan and Singapore are the top three and the Indians will have to have the swims of their lives if they are going to beat any of those teams to a medal. The final will take place around 5 pm IST.

9.15 am: Swimming

India top their heat in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay but had only two other teams as competitors – Qatar and Mongolia. This was the unseeded heat and India’s timing of 3:25.17 is unlikely to make the cut for the final. India’s team comprises Aaron Dsouza, Anshul Kothari, Sajan Prakash and Virdhawal Khade.

9.05 am: Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification – Shooting

Anjum Moudgil maintains her second position after the prone round, in which she shoots 98, 100, 99, and 97 to get a total of 394. Her overall score after the kneeling and prone rounds is 786, which is the same as Mongolia’s Narantuya Chuluunbadrakh. The Mongolian leads because of better inner 10s.

9 am: Rowing

India’s Rohit Kumar and Bhagwan Singh top the repechage round in the men’s lightweight double sculls with a timing of 7:12.23 to qualify for the main A-final, which means they have a shot at a medal.

8.48 am: Swimming

Sandeep Sejwal is a reserve for the 100m breaststroke final as his timing of 62.07 seconds was the 10th best across all heats. The top eight get a direct entry into the final, while the 9th and 10th fastest swimmers are kept as reserves in case any of the top eight have to pull out. Sejwal missed out on a direct qualification by 0.07 seconds. China’s Zibei Yan topped the heats with a Games record timing of 59.91 seconds.

8.43 am: Gymnastics

Dipa Karmakar, who failed to qualify for the vault final but made the cut in the balance beam, will not compete in the team final on Wednesday as she has injured her knee again, according to a report in the Times of India.

Karmakar injured her right knee – the same one that was operated on after the Rio Olympics – while landing during a practice session ahead of Tuesday’s qualification round, her coach Bisweshwar Nandi told the daily. As a result, she wasn’t at her best during the competition and finished eighth in the vault qualification round, scoring 13.225.

8.30 am: Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification – Shooting

Anjum Moudgil has a good kneeling round, shooting 97, 98, 99, and 98, to get a total of 392. Only Mongolia’s Narantuya Chuluunbadrakh has a better round, recording a total of 395.

8.18 am: Women’s 25m pistol qualification – Shooting

Manu Bhaker has an excellent precision round, shooting 99, 98 and 100 to top the table with a total of 297. The next best shooter, Korea’s Kim Minjung, shoots 294. India’s Rahi Sarnobat is also in the top 8, with 288 (97, 95, 96).

8.10 am: Swimming

India’s Sandeep Sejwal tops his heat in the 100m breaststroke with a timing of 62.07 seconds. The next best swimmer in his heat was nearly six seconds slower than him. Sandeep has a chance of making the final with that timing.

Sandeep Sejwal

7.55 am: Women’s 50m rifle 3 positions qualification – Shooting

Anjum Moudgil records a 97 and 98 in the first two series of the kneeling position, while Gaayathri Nithyanandam gets two 97s.

7.53 am: Women’s 25m pistol qualification – Shooting

Manu Bhaker gets off to a great start in the precision round, recording a 99 in the first series to top the table. Rahi Sarnobat is joint fifth with 97.

7.50 am: Swimming

Sajan Prakash fails to make the cut for the 100m butterfly final. The eighth best swimmer across the five heats, Japan’s Nao Horomura, records a timing of 53.30 seconds. Sajan had 54.06, which is the 12th fastest. Olympic champion Joseph Schooling tops the heats with 52.31 seconds.

7.40 am: Swimming

India’s Avinash Mani and Sajan Prakash both top their respective heats of the 100m butterfly with timings of 56.98 and 54.04 seconds respectively. Both these heats were for swimmers without any qualification time. Avinash is certain to not make the cut for the final, but Sajan has a chance.

Sajan Prakash

7.25 am: Wrestler Bajrang Punia returned to India last evening after his gold-winning performance at the Asiad. Here’s how he was received at the Delhi airport:

7.20 am: In some international news, China’s Liu Xiang shattered the world record in 50m backstroke on Tuesday, becoming the first female swimmer to go below 27 seconds. Liu, 21, broker her compatriot Zhao Jing’s nine-year-old record of 27.06, which was set during the 2009 world championships in Rome.

7.15 am: ICYMI, Zenia D’Cunha spoke to India’s only gold medallist on Tuesday – the 16-year-old shooter Saurabh Chaudhary. Here is what he said.


Good morning and welcome to The Field’s live blog for the fourth day of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang.

India’s day begins with some more shooting, archery, swimming and wushu.

Indian shooters took centre-stage on Tuesday, winning three of the five medals India bagged during the day. Sixteen-year-old Saurabh Chaudhary shot his way to a stunning gold medal while 29-year-old debutant Abhishek Verma won bronze in the men’s 10m air pistol.

Meanwhile, Veteran rifle shooter Sanjeev Rajput turned in a steady display to win a silver medal in a roller-coaster men’s 50m rifle 3-positions final. The 37-year-old scored a total of 452.7 points to clinch India’s third medal of the day.

Divya Kakran (bronze) in women’s freestyle wrestling and Men’s Regu Team (bronze) in sepaktakraw were the other medal winners for India on Tuesday.

Here is a round-up of all the action on Day 3, if you missed it.