Asian Games 2026: India Wins Women’s Kabaddi Gold as Anahat Singh Advances in Squash

India had a wonderful day at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, with their women’s kabaddi team clinching the gold medal while teenage squash sensation Anahat Singh making it to the final of the women’s singles event.

The Indian women won by defeating Iran 37-34 and managed to retain the Asian Games kabaddi crown. On the other hand, 18-year-old Anahat Singh made a stunning comeback against Japan’s world No. 6 Satomi Watanabe to make it to the squash singles final.

India’s Women Win Kabaddi Gold

The most notable performance for India came in the form of a victory for their women’s kabaddi team, who beat Iran 37-34 in the final. India was the defending champion as they had won the women’s kabaddi gold medal in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.

Indian women’s kabaddi team began the game in a very positive manner and were ahead by 22-16 in the first half. Iran staged a comeback in the second half and brought themselves closer, but India was able to hold onto their lead and won the game by three points.

This was also a highly historic moment for India as it was India’s fourth women’s kabaddi gold medal at the Asian Games, the others being won in 2010, 2014 and 2022. The only exception in the series was the 2018 Jakarta games, where Iran won the gold medal by beating India.

A Tough Final Against Iran

The final match between India and Iran was very important considering that Iran has traditionally been among the top opponents of India in women’s kabaddi at the Asian Games. Iran had beaten India in the 2018 final match to bring an end to India’s dominance in the sport.

This meant that Saturday’s match was more than just another medal match considering that India had earlier won the match against Iran in the group stages. They had beaten Iran 37-23 in the first match and then won subsequent matches to get back to face the same opposition in the final.

Anahat Singh Makes Final Run In Squash

As the kabaddi team won their gold medals on Saturday, another star of India made their mark in squash. The young Anahat Singh beat Japan’s world No. 6 Satomi Watanabe in a five game semifinal match to qualify for the women’s singles finals.

It seemed like things were going to go wrong for Anahat considering that she lost the first two games of the match. However, she managed to completely change the momentum in her favor to win 9-11, 11-13, 12-10, 11-6, 11-3.

Anahat’s Road to the Final

But even prior to that victory, Anahat had shown some excellent form during the early stages of the competition. In the quarterfinal, she played another Indian, Tanvi Khanna, who she beat in a dominant performance, 11-2, 11-5, 11-3 in just 19 minutes.

Having met in the quarterfinals for an all-India match, it was almost certain that one Indian player would qualify. But Anahat displayed no uncertainty regarding her performance, as she dominated throughout the whole match.

However, the match against Watanabe was a completely different challenge for her. Falling behind 0-2, Anahat needed to win three straight games in order to qualify for the finals, which she did brilliantly.

India’s Growing Squash Medal Hopes

It should be noted that Anahat’s results are not the only success of Indian squash players at the Aichi-Nagoya Games. The other examples include Abhay Singh, who qualified to the semifinal of men’s singles, as well as Joshna Chinappa and Velavan Senthilkumar, who moved into the semifinals of mixed-doubles.

Both Joshna and Velavan already won a medal prior to their semifinal game, while Anahat and Abhay also qualified for the semifinals with a medal guarantee.

What Anahat Singh’s Final Means

However, by virtue of reaching the final, Anahat now stands guaranteed a silver medal, and she gets an additional chance to claim the Asian Games gold in the women’s singles competition.

This is because Anahat was able to overcome her earlier defeat against the same opponent in a match of five games held sometime in the year before the Asian Games.

This accomplishment is yet another feather in the cap of the rising Indian star’s already impressive international career.

Medals Galore for India in Asian Games

While Anahat progressed to the women’s singles final, the kabaddi gold medal was won by the women’s kabaddi team of India at the ongoing Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya. This happened in a busy day for India at the Asian Games.

Several Indian athletes competed in kabaddi, squash, athletics, shooting, badminton, hockey, boxing, archery, and many other competitions. The gold medal won by India in women’s kabaddi was particularly significant for India as it increased its already impressive haul of gold medals in this game.

Conclusion

September 26 has turned out to be a very crucial date for India at the 2026 Asian Games. The ladies’ kabaddi team managed to successfully defend their title after they defeated Iran 37-34, while Anahat Singh came back from losing two matches to enter the squash singles final.

India’s victory in the kabaddi category ensured their domination in the event through history, whereas Anahat’s success was another major feat in Indian squash.

There is still a number of other medal events going on, and thus the campaign of India in Aichi-Nagoya is far from being over yet.

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