Asian Games 2014 Day 8 Highlights: Two Historic Golds in Squash and Archery; One Silver, One Bronze in Athletics; Men in Hockey Semis
India began their weekend at Incheon in style with two historic gold medals in Squash and Archery and added 11 medals to their tally by the end of Day 8. Catch all the highlights here.
With nine medals on Day 8, India have leapt from 16th to the 11th spot on the medals tally. The day was highlighted by historic gold medal victories in Squash and Archery, followed by medals in wrestling, shooting and athletics. Follow our highlights from Asian Games 2014 here. (MEDALS TALLY/SCHEDULE/FRIDAY HIGHLIGHTS)
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19.03 (IST): India finish Day 8 at 11th spot with 28 medals in all! They now have 3 golds, 5 silvers and 20 bronze medals.
18.51 (IST): Silver in Athletics - India add a silver and a bronze to its tally as Bahrain's Ruth Jebet was disqualified in Women's 3000m Steeplechase. Lalita Babar, who initially won bronze, gets the silver while Sudha Singh takes bronze after finishing fourth.
18.33 (IST): Athletics - India's Arokia Rajiv qualifies for final after finishing third in men's 400m semis.
18.25 (IST): Athletics - India's Kunhu Muhammad finishes fourth in Men's 400m semifinal.
18.12 (IST): BRONZE in Athletics! - India's Lalita Babar wins bronze in women's 3000m Steeplechase event.
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17.17 (IST): Athletics - Mandeep Kaur and Poovamma Raju now through to finals of women 400m event.
17.12 (IST): ANOTHER WRESTLING BRONZE! Geetika Jakhar beats Vietnam's Hien Ly to win bronze in women's freestyle 63 kg event.
17.02 (IST): Sania Mirza-Saketh Myneni beat Korea's Nalae Han-Cheongeui Kim 6-3, 7-6 to enter mixed doubles semis. Assured of a medal.
16.53 (IST): BRONZE MEDAL!! Vinesh Phogal beats Mongolia's Narangerel Erdenesukh in women's freestyle 48kg wrestling event to clinch a bronze medal.
16.41 (IST): Athletics - Preeja Sreedharan finishes 7th in women's 10,000m finals. She had won a gold medal in the previous edition of the Asian Games in 2010.
16.35 (IST): Athletics - India's Chandrodaya Singh out of medal contention in Hammer Throw final after throwing a best of 66.98m.
16.29 (IST): Athletics - India's Shradha Narayana finishes 5th in women's 100 m Heat 3, fails to qualify for semis.
16.15 (IST): Boxing - Gaurav Bidhuri beats Nepal's Prem Chaudhary 3-0 to reach quarters of men's fly (52kg) category.
16.05 (IST): Athletics - India's Kunhu Mohammed, Arokia Rajiv qualify for semis of men's 400m heats.
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15:46 (IST): Indian squash men's team beats Malaysia 2-0 to win first-ever gold medal in the event!! Ghosal beat Ong of Malaysia 11-9 in the final game of the second match.
Finally Ghosal converts a gold medal point! Gold for India in squash.
- Vikram Chandra (@vikramchandra) September 27, 2014
15:27 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Ghosal loses 4th game 14-12 vs Ong in 2nd match of final, into the decider now!
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15:05 (IST): Squash, Men's Team: Saurav Ghosal wins 3rd game 11-6 vs Ong of Malaysia in final, India a game away from gold.
14:58 (IST): Tennis, Men's Doubles: Sanam-Myneni beat Taipei's Chien/Hsien 6-2, 7-6 to reach semis, bronze assured.
14:54 (IST): Men's Hockey: India beat China 2-0 in their last Pool B match to qualify for the semifinals.
14:51 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Ghosal wins 2nd game 11-7 vs Ong of Malaysia in 2nd match. It's 1 game all now!
14:36 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Ghosal loses 1st game 11-6 vs Ong of Malaysia in 2nd match. India won 1st match through Sandhu.
14:34 (IST): Men's Hockey: At the end of the 3rd quarter, it's India 2 China 0 in this do-or-die Pool B clash.
14:33 (IST): Men's Hockey: GOAL! Lakra makes it two against China! India 2 China 0. Secs left in the 3rd quarter.
14:26 (IST): Men's Hockey: GOAL! Raghunath converts from the penalty corner. 10 minutes into the 3rd quarter and it's India 1 China 0.
14:24 (IST): Boxing, Women's Middle (69-75kg): Pooja Rani beats Mongolia's Erdenesoyol to reach quarters.
14:06 (IST): Men's Hockey: It's India 0 China 0 at the end of the 1st half in this Pool B do-or-die clash.
14:04 (IST): Squash, Men's Team: Sandhu wins 1st match 11-8, 11-6, 8-11, 11-4 vs Iskandar of Malaysia in final. India lead 1-0 in best-of-three team contest.
Just don't want to see a repeat of men's singles final in squash team final. @SauravGhosal losing from match-point was absurd #AsianGames
- soumitra bose (@soumitra65) September 27, 2014
13:56 (IST): Men's Hockey: 7 minutes into the 2nd quarter now and it's still 0-0 between India and China. India holding the ball well but not really troubling China at the moment.
13:51 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Sandhu loses 3rd game 11-8 vs Iskandar of Malaysia but still leads 2 games to 1.
13:47 (IST): Men's Hockey: A close 1st quarter between India and China, it's 0-0 after 15 mins in this do-or-die clash.
13:41 (IST): Tennis, Men's Doubles: Yuki-Sharan beat Taipei's Wang/Lee 7-5, 7-6 to reach semis, bronze assured.
13:38 (IST): Men's Hockey: After seven minutes in the first quarter, it's still India 0 China 0 in this Pool B match that India must draw in order to progress to the semis.
13:37 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Harinder Sandhu wins 2nd game 11-6 vs Iskandar of Malaysia in 1st match, leads 2-0.
India's second gold today should come from men's squash team final vs Malaysia. Good day so far #AsianGames http://t.co/w9W0TNvM4s
- soumitra bose (@soumitra65) September 27, 2014
13:31 (IST): Men's Hockey: The Pool B match between India and China is now under way.
13:28 (IST): Squash, Men's Team Final: Harinder Pal Sandhu has won 1st game 11-8 vs Iskandar of Malaysia in first match.
13:26 (IST): Coming up: India take on China in their last Pool B men's hockey match. They need a draw to reach semis.
13:09 (IST): Squash, Men's Team: Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu in action for India vs Malaysia in the final.
13:03 (IST): Boxing, Women's Light (57-60kg): Sarita Devi beats North Korea's Chungson to reach quarters.
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12:58 (IST): Abhishek Verma settles for silver in men's compound archery individual event.
12:54 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Individual: With three arrows left, Abhishek Verma trails Ebadi of Iran 115-112.
12:52 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Individual: Abhishek Verma trailing 86-82 after 3 ends in final vs Esmaeil Ebadi.
12:50 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Individual: Abhishek Verma trailing 57-56 after 2 ends in final vs Esmaeil Ebadi.
12:47 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Individual: Abhishek Verma leads 29-28 after 3 of 15 arrows in final vs Ebadi.
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12:45 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Individual: Abhishek Verma now in action vs Esmaeil Ebadi of Iran in the final.
12:33 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 63kg Freestyle Semis: Geetika Jakhar goes down vs Zhuoma Xiluo of China, loses by a fall.
One archery gold makes a great difference. #India now 11th from 16th overnight. By end of day, we should be breaking into top-10 #AsianGames
- soumitra bose (@soumitra65) September 27, 2014
Japan has been India's nemesis in Wrestling. 3 loses in a row now. #AsianGames2014 (Even Sushil lost the gold to a Japanese in London2012)
- Nikhil Naz (@NikhilNaz) September 27, 2014
12:27 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 63kg Freestyle Semis: Geetika Jakhar in action now against Zhuoma Xiluo of China.
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12:25 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 48kg Freestyle Semis: Vinesh Phogat loses to Japan's Eri Tosaka.
12:18 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 48kg Freestyle Semis: Vinesh Phogat in action now against Japan's Eri Tosaka.
12:14 (IST): Trisha Deb beats Taipei's Huang I Jou 138-134 to win bronze in women's compound individual archery event.
12:04 (IST): Tennis, Women's Doubles: Sania Mirza/Prarthana Thombare beat Nicha/Peangtarn of Thailand 6-1, 7-6 to reach semis. Bronze assured.
11:57 (IST): Indian women's squash team loses 2-0 to Malaysia in final, settles for silver medal.
11:50 (IST): Squash, Women's Team: Pallikal down 2-0 vs Nicol David in 2nd match of the final. It's do-or-die now.
11:44 (IST): Abhishek Verma beats Malaysia's Mahazan 143-135 to enter gold medal match in men's compound individual archery!
11:40 (IST): Squash, Women's Team Final: After losing the 1st match, India in further trouble as Pallikal trails 1-0 vs Nicol David. Interesting to note that Pallikal lost to the same opponent in the individual semis some days ago. David is world no.1 in squash.
11:37 (IST): Wrestling, Women's Freestyle 63kg: Geetika Jakhar thrashes Thailand's Autnun to enter semis.
11:31 (IST): Tennis, Men's Singles: Sanam Singh loses 7-6, 6-4 to Lu Yen Hsun of Taipei in quarters.
11:30 (IST): Boxing: Kim looks exhausted. Mary landing several punches on counter. The Korean takes a lot of hammering. Mary a clear winner by points.
11:28 (IST): The two-minute rounds are helping Mary who didn't take part in competitive boxing for several months after the 2012 London Games. In between she became a mother again.
11:27 (IST): Boxing: Lot of arm wrestling in Round 3. Kim a bit more aggressive but Mary Kom hits back with combinations. Wins the Round easily.
11:26 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 48kg Freestyle: Vinesh Phogat thrashes Uzbekistan's Dauletbike to enter semis.
11:23 (IST): Boxing: Flurry of right hand punches give Mary Kom Round 2 too. All judges score in Mary's favour.
11:22 (IST): Boxing: Mary gets in a lot of round-arm punches. The 31-year-old looks vastly experienced. Mary Kom mixing body shots and straight punches to keep Kim on the back foot.
11:21 (IST): Boxing: Crowd chanting Mary, Mary, Mary. 22-year-old Kim is the taller boxer. Round 1 goes to Mary Kom.
11:20 (IST): Squash, Women's Team: Alankamony loses 11-9, 12-10, 11-2 to Arnold of Malaysia in first match of the final.
11:18 (IST): Boxing: Mary Kom in Blue corner, Kim in the red. The stadium is going crazy. Mary under pressure.
11:16 (IST): Coming up is Mary Kom's first bout of the Asian Games. The London Olympics bronze medallist will take on Yeji Kim of Korea in Round of 16 (48-51 kg). Mary aiming for first Asian Games gold.
11:15 (IST): Archery, Women's Compound Individual Semis: Trisha Deb loses 145-140 to Jihyun Seok of South Korea. She will now compete in the bronze medal match.
11:13 (IST): Parveen, an Asian championship bronze medal winner, made a good comeback, but the experienced Japanese, in his second Asian Games, clinches the bout 3-2 and enters quarters. Second Indian wrestler to lose today.
11:06 (IST): Japanese Takafumi Kojima, 2006 Qatar Asian Games silver medallist, is leading against Parveen Rana in 70 kg freestyle pre-quarterfinals.
11:05 (IST): Squash, Women's Team Final: Anaka Alankamony loses 2nd game 12-10 to Arnold of Malaysia in the 1st match. She trails 2-0.
A report says nobody recognised #AsianGames shooting champion Jitu Rai at Indore airport. We may go to Mars, what about sports awareness?
- soumitra bose (@soumitra65) September 27, 2014
10:55 (IST): Squash, Women's Team Final: Anaka Alankamony leads 2nd game 8-6 after losing the 1st 11-9 vs Arnold of Malaysia.
10:51 (IST): Japanese swimmer Naoya Tomita has been expelled from the Asian Games after he admitted stealing a photojournalist's camera at the Incheon pool, his team said on Saturday.
10:44 (IST): Squash: Indian women's team now in action against Malaysia in the final.
10:39 (IST): Wrestling, Men's 57kg Freestyle Pre-Quarters: Amit Kumar loses to Japan's Fumitaka Morishita.
10:34 (IST): Chain Singh wins shooting bronze in Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions event.
10:26 (IST): Tennis, Men's Singles: Yuki Bhambri beats Danai Udamchoke of Thailand 6-3, 6-2 to enter semis. Another bronze assured for India!
10:22 (IST): Sanjeeva Singh (sanjeevasingh@tatahousing.com), India's first successful compound archer and Arjuna Awardee, has sent his congratulations for the Indian gold-winning men's compound archery team.
"It is a historic moment for Indian archery. Congratulations and keep it up Indian archery team members. I am proud to have started the compound archery in 2004 in India and see the Indian men and women team win a gold and a bronze medal. Waiting for Abhishek to win the individual gold at 11.30 am today."
10:16 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 63kg Freestyle: Geetikha Jakhar beats Kazakhstan's Larionova to enter quarters.
10:09 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 63kg Freestyle Pre-Quarters: Geetikha Jakhar in action now against Kazakhstan's Yekaterina Larionova.
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10:05 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 48kg Freestyle: Vinesh Phogat beats Yongmi Pak of North Korea 3-1 to enter quarters.
A golden start to the day...India's compound archery team beats World Champion Korea to win gold. Yay. #AsianGames #Incheon
- Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) September 27, 2014
9:59 (IST): Wrestling, Women's 48kg Freestyle Pre-Quarters: Vinesh Phogat in action against Yongmi Pak of North Korea.
9:56 (IST): Shooting, 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men's: Chain Singh at 5th position after kneeling round in final.
9:51 (IST): Tennis, Men's Singles: Sanam Singh is now in action in his quarterfinal match vs Lu Yen Hsun of Taipei.
9:42 (IST): Golf, Men's Individual: Udayan Mane is currently sharing the third spot with Taipei's Yu in Round 3.
08:58 (IST): Did you know? Compound archery gold medallist Rajat Chauhan's mother sold gold ornaments to buy an imported archery kit for his son from the USA.
08:54 (IST): After the archery gold and bronze, India have now climbed to 11th in the medals tally. (2 gold, 2 silver, 15 bronze).
08:49 (IST): Shooting, Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions: Chain Singh qualifies for individual finals. Sanjeev Rajput and Gagan Narang fail to make cut.
08:46 (IST): Shooting, Men's 50m Rifle 3 Positions: Indian team of Chain Singh, Sanjeev Rajput and Gagan Narang finishes 4th.
An archery gold for India! Big day. #Incheon #AsianGames
- Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) September 27, 2014
8:05 (IST): India win first-ever gold in archery in men's compound team event. They beat hosts South Korea 227-225 in final. So, India finally have their second gold medal in the Asian Games, the first achieved by Jitu Rai on the opening day of competition at Incheon. This will surely boost India's position in the rankings table.
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8:01 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team Final: India now have a 199-195 lead vs South Korea with just 3 arrows left! Gold in sight!
7:58 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team Final: At the three-quarter mark, India lead South Korea 170-169.
7:56 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team Final: After 15 shots, India lead South Korea 142-140.
7:51 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team: India increase their lead to 84-82 vs South Korea after nine shots in final.
7:49 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team Final: India lead South Korea 55-54 after the first six shots.
7:44 (IST): Archery, Men's Compound Team: India will now play their final match vs South Korea.
7:42 (IST): Shooting, 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men's Qualification: Chain Singh currently 4th, Gagan Narang 8th.
7:30 (IST): Did you know? Indian Women's Compound Team bronze medallist Trisha Deb won the World Archery Federation's Gold Target award in 2013.
7:23 (IST): Shooting, 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men's Qualification: Gagan Narang is currently at the 11th position.
6:53 (IST): Archery, Women's Compound Team: India beat Iran to win the bronze medal. The Indian team of Trisha Deb, Purvasha Sudhir Shende, Jyothi Surekha Vennam beat Iran 224-217.
As we celebrate medals at #2014AsianGames let's not forget the 2 medals we missed because @BCCI didn't send teams in men's & women's cricket
- Nikhil Naz (@NikhilNaz) September 26, 2014
Will archers show the day on Saturday? Team India will vie for medals in two events at the Gyeyang Asiad Archery field - while the women will compete with Iran for the compound team bronze, the men will take on hosts Korea for the gold medal. In the individual section, two Indians - Trisha Deb and Abhishek Verma - will be playing in the semifinals of the compound category. Ranked 39 in the world, Trisha takes on Korean world No. 12 Jihyun Seok while the more experienced Verma matches arrows with Muhammad Zaki bin Mahazan of Malaysia.
But much of the attention on Saturday will be at the Yeorumul squash courts where India are in line for two historic gold medals. Both women and men team finals will be India versus Malaysia affairs. India have never been in this position before and a gold medal will be really creditable. Indian men beat Kuwait in the semifinals, with Saurav Ghosal sealing a 2-0 win after Mahesh Mangaokar won his opening match.
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The team of Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinappa got the better of Korea in the semis. Joshna won a three-setter to give India a winning start and Dipika, who won the singles bronze, wrapped up the contest after dropping a game. But Malaysia, led by world No. 1 Nicol David, will be the team to beat in both finals.
Indian shooting's big boy Gagan Narang will get a chance to win a medal in the 50m Rifle three-positions. Chain Singh and Sanjeev Rajput complete the Indian line-up in an event where China's Yifei Cao holds the Asian record and Kazakh Igor Pirekeyev has the Asian Games record. Both will be in fray at the Ongnyeon International Shooting Range. Two Indian women will shoot in the skeet competition. Arti Singh Rao and Rashmee Rathore will compete against the stronger Chinese and Koreans who have the Games record.
After losing 2-1 against Pakistan, Sardar Singh's team comes up against the Chinese Wall in their final pool match. India and China have two wins each and both teams will fancy their chances of making the semifinals. Pakistan are sure to top this group. India have a 3-1 win-loss record against China in the Asian Games, but records will count for nothing on Saturday. Having a better goal difference, India must ensure a draw to qualify.
Athletics gets off the block on Saturday while tennis is in the quarterfinal stages and several Indians, including Sania Mirza, Sanam Singh and Yuki Bhambri, are in fray.
In boxing, former world champion and London Olympics bronze medallist Mary Kom will take on a Korean in a Round of 16 clash in the 48-51 kg class. Sarita Devi and Pooja Rani will also be in action. Gaurav Bidhuri and Mandeep Jangra will be the men in the ring.