Asian Games 2026: Satwik-Chirag knocked out in first round by Thailand

India suffered a big setback in the men's doubles badminton event at the Asian Games 2026 on Friday. Defending champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were knocked out in the very first round. The pair lost to Thailand's Peeratchai Sukphun and Pakkapon Teeraratsakul.

The match was played at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium. The Indian pair, ranked fifth in the world, lost 21-12, 19-21, 14-21 to the Thai pair, ranked 36th in the world. The defeat meant an early exit for Satwik and Chirag in the very first round.

The duo had entered the Asian Games after winning the China Masters tournament. In the final of the China Masters, after trailing by a set, they made a comeback in a match that lasted 70 minutes to beat China's He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu 11-21, 21-13, 21-17.

In this Asian Games match, Satwik and Chirag made a brilliant start, winning the first set 21-12 to take firm control. But Sukphun and Teeraratsakul pushed the Indian pair back in the second set. The Thai players dominated the next two sets and completely turned the match around. The Thai pair won the second set 21-19 in 24 minutes.

Satwik and Chirag also failed to deliver in the third and final set. The Thai pair once again produced a strong performance to stun everyone, winning the set 21-14 in just 19 minutes.

Meanwhile, in mixed doubles, Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila have reached the quarterfinals with two consecutive wins. In the first round, Tanisha and Dhruv beat the Maldives' Nibal Ahmed and Aminath Nabeeha Abdul Razzaq 21-8, 21-7. They then sealed a place in the top eight by beating Malaysia's Shevon Jemie Lai and Soon Huat Goh 22-20, 24-22 in a tough contest lasting an hour.

In the quarterfinals, Tanisha and Dhruv will face China's Yan Zhe Feng and Dongping Huang. Earlier, in women's singles, Unnati Hooda also reached the second round. Unnati beat North Korea's Mi Song Yu 21-9, 21-10 in a match lasting 30 minutes.