Asian Games: India whitewash Pakistan in women's table tennis
India beat traditional rivals Pakistan 3-0 in women's table tennis at the Asian Games, sweeping every set on the way to the win.
The Asian Games 2026 are underway in Japan, with Indian teams turning in strong performances across sports. India's win over Pakistan in table tennis drew particular excitement among fans, given the traditional rivalry between the two countries.
The Indian women's table tennis team defeated Pakistan 3-0 in a one-sided contest, giving their opponents no chance to recover. Pakistan failed to win even a single game in the entire tie, underlining India's dominance.
Sutirtha Mukherjee opened the tie, using her aggressive serves and controlled play to beat her Pakistani opponent in straight sets, 3-0, putting India 1-0 up. Cinderella Das followed, playing an impressive game that gave her opponent no opening at the table, and also won in straight sets, 3-0, taking India's lead to 2-0.
In the third and decisive match, Sreeja Akula showed her world-class game, beating her Pakistani opponent 3-0 to seal India's clean sweep of the tie. All three players won their matches in straight sets without dropping a single set, reflecting India's clear dominance in the contest.
The win has boosted the Indian team's confidence ahead of the next rounds in table tennis. Pakistan, meanwhile, will now need to win to stay in contention, or their campaign could end here.
Along with the table tennis win, India also put in strong performances in other sports at the Asian Games. In kabaddi, the Indian team, led by captain Sunil Kumar, defeated hosts Japan by a big margin, 49-23. In shooting, India won medals as well, with Himanshu taking silver and Rudrankksh bronze in the 10m air rifle event. These results have given India a strong start to the Games.
