Asian Games Day 5 Highlights: Boxer Akhil Kumar Advances to Last 16, Rower Dushyant Bags Bronze
India continued to struggle to enter the top-10 in the Asian Games medal tally, slipping to 15th. Shooters and archers have drawn a blank on Day 5.
Rower Dushiant Dushyant was the lone bright star for India, winning a bronze in men's lightweight single sculls. Boxers Akhil Kumar and Shiva Thapa reached pre-quarters, while gymnast Dipa Karmakar failed to win a medal. Highlights of Day 5. (Medal Tally)
What do you feel about India's performance at the Asian Games? Write in at myvoice@ndtv.com. Best entries will feature on NDTVSports.
In 2010, India got 5 golds in athletics, 2 each in boxing and kabaddi, 1 in single sculls rowing. #AsianGames
- Vikram Chandra (@vikramchandra) September 24, 2014
India's performance so far at the #AsianGames has been rather depressing. After a good run in 2010 and at the CWG.
- Vikram Chandra (@vikramchandra) September 24, 2014
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18:40 (IST): Swimming - Japanese sensation Kosuke Hagino won his fourth gold medal of the Asian Games in the men's 400 metres individual medley.
18:23 (IST): Taiwan's Grand Slam-winning doubles star Hsieh Su-wei helped her team to gold in the tennis final with a 2-1 victory over rivals China.
18:12 (IST): India finish Day 5 with just one bronze medal. We have received a mix of positive and negative reactions from readers. But on a day when our scientists have created history and India can really be proud with our space research programme, Vikas Gupta's (vikastec22@gmail.com ) comments is extremely pertinent at this stage of the Asian Games. This is what he sent us:
"It looks like reaching Mars is much more easier than winning a gold in Asian Games for Indians....!!"
Anooj Koushik (anooj_koushik@yahoo.com) is worried that India lack a sports culture and the results are not unexpected. He writes:
"As much as we blame our Indian athletes for not winning medals, it think it is very important for us to know why. Most of the sports where Asian countries easily win medals is due to the fact that it is part of either their schooling or street games played on a daily basis. Martial arts, gymnastics, swimming, TT, badminton are games that a part of regular fitness regime in all schools in China, JPN and Korea. No one needs to go beyond schools or any special coaching to learn it. Think about us, our PT time periods are used by teachers to conduct special classes. And coming to street games, can we think of anything else other than cricket?"
17:48 (IST): Gymnastics - Dipa Karmakar fails to win a medal as she finished fourth in the women's vault final. She scored 14.600.
17:36 (IST): Gymnastics - Dipa Karmakar qualifies for the women's Vault final. She bagged bronze medal at the recently-concluded Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
17:20 (IST): Swimming - Indian team finishes seventh with a timing of 3:25.94 in the men's 4x100 metres freestyle final. China bag the gold with a new Games record.
16:59 (IST): Boxing - Akhil Kumar claims an easy victory over Purna Bahadur Lama of Nepal in the opening round of men's lightweight 60kg category. Referee had stopped the contest midway through the third round as Akhil won by technical knockout. The Indian advances to pre-quarters.
16:55 (IST): Boxing - Akhil Kumar pummels Nepal's Bahadur in the second round. A one-way contest so far.
16:52 (IST): Boxing - Akhil Kumar comes out blazing against Nepal's Bahadur who gets two standing counts in first round.
16:48 (IST): Boxing - Akhil Kumar vs Purna Bahadur Lama of Nepal in men's lightweight 60kg category gets underway.
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16:20 (IST): Tamil Nadu government announces a cash award of Rs 30 lakh for squash star Saurav Ghosal for winning historic silver medal.
15:55 (IST): Palestine is rising in world soccer. Here's more on how the players have braved war and tough conditions in their homeland to prepare for the Asian Games.
15:40 (IST): Archery, Women's Recurve Team: Indian team finishes at the 5th spot.
15:39 (IST): Archery, Women's Recurve Individual: Deepika Kumari finishes 8th, Laxmirani 15th, Bombayla Devi 20th and Vardhineni at 30th position.
15:34 (IST): Women's Team Squash: India beat Pakistan 3-0 in Group B.
15:21 (IST): Women's Team Squash: India lead Pakistan 2-0 in Group B after Pallikal, Chinappa win their singles matches.
15:16 (IST): As India struggle to win their second gold in Incheon, the frustration level is rising among Indian fans. Dr BP Srivastava (bpsrvstv@gmail.com) says:
"It looks the "Achhe Din" is far for the Indians at the Asiad 2014!!"
Biswanath Roy (jabalpurbnr@yahoo.co.in) is equally worried. He writes:
"I feel there is no sense sending teams in disciplines like sepaktakraw, wushu, football, taekwondo, cycling and swimming, where we do not stand any chance of even getting past the first round. It's just a waste of money and time. It is so humiliating when India lose by heavy margins. Wrestling, boxing, athletics and archery are disciplines where some gold medals can be expected. Our wrestling performance at CWG 2014 was excellent but in Asian Games 2014, it won't be the same because Indians will be up against wrestlers from Iran, Japan, Korea, and Central Asian nations, who are best in the world."
15:07 (IST): Archery, Women's Recurve Team: Indian team lying in the 5th spot as of now.
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15:05 (IST): The Qatar women's basketball team refused to play in their Asian Games group match against Mongolia on Wednesday after being refused permission to wear the hijab.
15:03 (IST): Archery, Women's Recurve Individual: Deepika Kumari 8th, Laxmirani 15th, Bombayla Devi 20th and Vardhineni at 30th position.
14:54 (IST): Women's Hockey: China beat India 2-1 in their Pool A match.
14:42 (IST): Women's Hockey: Less than 7 minutes to go for the end of the Pool A match and India and China are still tied 1-1.
14:20 (IST): Day 5 Recap: Indian rower Dushiant Dushyant won bronze in lightweight men's single sculls.
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14:18 (IST): Women's Hockey: At the start of the 3rd quarter, India and China still tied 1-1.
14:02 (IST): Women's Hockey: We are nearing the end of the 2nd quarter and the 1st half and it's India 1 China 1 now.
13:52 (IST): Women's Hockey: 19' China have taken a 1-0 lead over India in the 2nd quarter.
13:45 (IST): Women's Hockey: India and China locked 0-0 at the end of the 1st quarter.
13:30 (IST): Women's Hockey: India now taking on China in their Pool A match.
12:57 (IST): Sepaktakraw: Thailand blank India 3-0 in Women's Preliminary Group B.
12:42 (IST): Women's Doubles Badminton: Gadre/Reddy (IND) lose 21-16, 19-21, 21-14 to Maeda/Kakiiwa (JPN) in Rd 2.
12:40 (IST): Women's Singles Tennis: Natasha Palha (IND) loses 7-5, 6-3 to Noppawan Lertcheewakaran (Thailand) in Rd 2.
12:34 (IST): Men's Volleyball: India beat Maldives 3-0 in their Preliminary Group C match.
12:30 (IST): In case you missed it, Indian rower Dushiant Dushyant today won a bronze medal in the lightweight men's single sculls at the Asian Games. Interestingly, he had taken up the sport only in 2012.
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12:21 (IST): Narantuya Chuluunbadrakh became the first Mongolian to win a shooting gold medal in the Asian Games when she clinched the women's 50m rifle prone title on Wednesday.
12:14 (IST): Men's Basketball: India knocked out after losing 76-41 to Iran in their Preliminary Group E match.
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12:08 (IST): Weightlifting Men's 85kg: Vikas Thakur ranked No. 1 with a 148 kg Snatch best & a 179 kg Clean & Jerk best.
12:02 (IST): Tennis Women's Doubles: India's Sunkara/Rana beat Mansoor/Suhail (Pakistan) 6-4, 6-0 to enter Round 2.
#Mangalyaan should inspire Indian athletes at @incheonAG2014en #AsianGames. It's time to break into the golden orbit. Go, boxers, go!
- soumitra bose (@soumitra65) September 24, 2014
11:51 (IST): Men's Basketball: India trail Iran 58-36 in their Preliminary Group E match at the end of the 3rd quarter.
11:26 (IST): Weightlifting Men's 85kg: Vikas Thakur finishes the Snatch round with a best of 148 kg.
11:19 (IST): Men's Basketball: India trail Iran 38-28 in their Preliminary Group E match at the end of the 2nd quarter.
11:12 (IST): Weightlifting Men's 85kg: Vikas Thakur lifts 140 kg in snatch and 175 kg in 1st attempt of clean and jerk.
11:03 (IST): Men's Basketball: India trailing 30-23 vs Iran in 2nd quarter of their Preliminary Group E match.
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10:48 (IST): Boxing, Men's Bantam (56kg) Round of 32: Shiva Thapa has won over Prada of East Timor through a walkover.
10:46 (IST): Boxing, Men's Bantam (56kg) Round of 32: Shiva Thapa will now be in action vs Helo Prada of East Timor.
10:39 (IST): Women's Team Volleyball: India lose 3-0 to Thailand.
10:33 (IST): Asian Games organisers have confirmed a football player from Tajikistan tested positive for a banned stimulant in the first doping case at Incheon. Khurshed Beknazarov has been disqualified from the games and the findings would be forwarded to football world governing body FIFA and to the World Anti-Doping Agency.
10:20 (IST): Women's Team Volleyball: India have also lost the second set 25-12 vs Thailand after losing the 1st 25-19. It is a best-of-five contest.
10:06 (IST): Badminton Men's Doubles Round of 32: India's Akshay Dewalkar and Pranaav Chopra lose 21-10, 21-15 vs Cai/Fu (China).
10:03 (IST): Women's Team Squash: India beat Hong Kong 2-1 in Group Play Stage B.
10:00 (IST): Women's Team Volleyball: India have lost the first set 25-19 vs Thailand. They trail 3-2 in the 2nd set.
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09:34 (IST): Badminton Women's Singles Round of 32: PV Sindhu also beats Kit Leng Wong of Macau 21-7, 21-13.
09:31 (IST): Is India's performance in the 2014 Asian Games all below-par and not up to expectations? Satyajit Patnaik (satyajit.patnaik@ymail.com) has the following to say:
Though India is languishing below at 13th in the tally, their performance shouldn't be blamed. They nearly missed at winning a gold. They need to concentrate and focus more n withstand the fierce competition from the hosts,China and others. Nonetheless, I hope India emulates the 2010 tally. Also to remind that India had won their 2nd gold on 7th day in 2010.
9:27 (IST): Badminton Women's Singles Round of 32: Sixth seed Saina Nehwal beats U Teng Lok of Macau 21-10, 21-8.
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9:16 (IST): Badminton Women's Singles Round of 32: Sixth seed Saina Nehwal has won the first game 21-10 vs U Teng Lok of Macau.
9:10 (IST): Badminton Women's Singles Round of 32: Saina Nehwal has a 11-7 lead at the break in 1st game vs U Teng Lok of Macau.
9:07 (IST): What is single sculls? In this rowing competition, a boat designed for a single person is used, who propels his boat with two oars, one in each hand. Indian rower Dushiant Dushyant today made the country proud in this event at the Asian Games.
9:03 (IST): India are missing on a lot of their top singles players in tennis as far as the 2014 Asian Games is concerned. While Somdev Devvarman, Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna pulled out, Sania Mirza reversed her decision to not take part only in the end. K. Srinivasa Rao (vathsala.srinivas@gmail.com) has the following to say:
It is very hard to imagine why the leading players did not participate in both men's and women's team events, if they had our teams had a bright chance of a medal. It is unfair on Sania Mirza's part only to play the individual events and not the team championship unless there is a plausible reason.
8:56 (IST): Did you know? India's 2014 Asian Games bronze-medallist Dushiant Dushyant began rowing only in 2012 at an army training camp in Roorkee. Dushyant's coach Sunny Singh suggested he could be a good rower because of his physique.
8:55 (IST): Equestrian: Indian team finishes fourth in eventing team dressage.
8:50 (IST): Squash Women's Team: Joshana Chinappa wins her singles match to make it 1-1 in Group B match vs Hong Kong.
8:23 (IST): Badminton Men's Doubles: Reddy/Attri beat Sarim/Sharafuddeen (Maldives) 21-7, 21-7 to reach pre-quarters.
8:17 (IST): Rowing: India's Roopendra Singh and Manjeet Singh finish fourth in Lightweight Men's Double Sculls Final.
8:03 (IST): Squash: India trail 1-0 in Women's Team Group B match vs Hong Kong after Dipika Pallikal loses singles in 5 sets.
7:55 (IST): Badminton Women's Doubles: Gadre/Reddy beat Nepal's Shrestha/Gurung 21-6, 21-10 to reach pre-quarters.
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7:51 (IST): Men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Individual: Harpreet Singh, Gurpreet Singh and Pemba Tamang fail to qualify for the final.
7:45 (IST): Men's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol Team: Indian team finishes fourth, misses out on bronze medal.
7:40 (IST): BRONZE FOR INDIA! Rower Dushyant Dushiant wins bronze in lightweight men's single sculls final.
7:22 (IST): Rowing: Sanjukta Dung Dung and Tarunikha Pratap finish 5th in Women's Pair final.
7:20 (IST): Sepaktakraw: Thailand beat India 3-0 in their Preliminary Men's Team Group A match.
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7:11 (IST): Swimming: Sandeep Sejwal fails to qualify for Men's 100m Breaststroke final after finishing 5th in Heat 3.
7:08 (IST): Swimming: Indian team qualifies for Men's 4x100m Freestyle Relay Final after finishing fourth in Heat 2.
7:04 (IST): Sepaktakraw Men's Team: Thailand have taken a 2-0 lead over India in their Preliminary Group A match.
6:58 (IST): Women's 50m Rifle Prone Team Final: Indian team of Chaudhry, Gauswami & Tejaswini Muley end a poor 11th.
6:55 (IST): Women's 50m Rifle Prone Individual: Raj Chaudhry, Lajja Gauswami and Tejaswini Muley fail to win a medal.
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A list of stars will take to the ring on Wednesday with Shiva Thapa (56kg category) beginning first. He will take on Parada Helo Leonel of a relatively unknown country called Timor Leste.Veteran boxer Akhil Kumar - making his comeback into the ring - will come in next to face Nepal's L Purna Bahadur in the 60kg category. (Complete boxing lineup)
Indian badminton stars Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu are in action too. They will take on U Teng Lok (Macau) and Wong Kit Len (Macau) respectively.
Shooters will once again look for glory as Lajja Gauswami, Raj Chaudhry, Tejaswini Muley take part in the Women's 50m rifle prone team and individual finals.
Hockey too will be in focus. While Indian men gear up for a mouth-watering clash against rivals Pakistan on Thursday, their women counterparts will face a stern test against defending champions China. Indian women beat Thailand 3-0 in the opener but the Chinese are expected to be far more gritty.