Badminton at Asian Games 2026: Satwik-Chirag to defend historic gold – Preview

India's badminton campaign at the 2022 Asian Games held in Hangzhou in September and October 2023 after a pandemic-enforced delay produced the best return in the sport's history for the country

A first-ever gold for Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty in men's doubles, a silver for the men's team after they led 2-0 in the final before China fought back to win it 3-2, and a bronze for HS Prannoy in men's singles.

Prannoy's medal ended a 41-year wait for an individual men's singles medal at the Games, last won by Syed Modi in 1982.

Between them, the three medals took India's overall Asian Games badminton tally to 13 across the sport's history 1982 New Delhi's haul of five bronze medals had stood as the country's best return before Hangzhou.

Three years on, India arrive in Japan for the 20th Asian Games running from September 19 to October 4 across Aichi and Nagoya carrying that legacy into a 20-member badminton squad headlined by two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu and the returning Satwik-Chirag pairing.

The badminton competition runs from September 20 to 29 at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium in Ichinomiya, with India fielding players across all seven medal events: men's and women's singles, men's, women's and mixed doubles, and the men's and women's team events.

Satwik-Chirag defend a landmark gold

Satwik-Chirag remain the headline act. Their 21-18, 21-16 win over South Korea's Choi Sol-gyu and Kim Won-ho in the Hangzhou final made them the first Indians to win Asian Games badminton gold, and briefly took them to world No. 1 a first for an Indian doubles pair.

Since then, their ranking has slipped: they were placed fifth in the world as of early August 2026, a season that included a new coaching setup and a bronze, not a gold, at the Thomas Cup in Horsens.

A Singapore Open title in May was a reminder of their ceiling.

In Aichi-Nagoya, the same South Korean pair they beat in 2023, Malaysia's Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik bronze medallists in Hangzhou and China's leading combinations stand between them and a repeat.

India's doubles depth extends beyond the headline pair: Hariharan Amsakarunan and Arjun Ramachandran, part of the silver-winning men's team three years ago, offer a second string.

Singles pressure on Lakshya and Sindhu

Lakshya Sen returns to the squad that won team silver in Hangzhou, this time as India's highest-ranked men's singles player at world No. 14.

His 2026 season has swung between statement wins he beat world No. 1 and reigning world champion Shi Yuqi at the All England Open in February and first-round exits that have kept his form inconsistent.

He will be aiming to better Prannoy's individual bronze from the last Games; Prannoy and former world No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth, both survivors of that silver-medal team, travel again alongside breakout singles player Ayush Shetty.

On the women's side, Sindhu carries the experience: her silver at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games remains India's best individual result in the sport at the Games, alongside a women's team bronze from Incheon 2014.

At 31, and back in the world's top 15 after climbing out of a form slump tied to injury through 2025, she leads a squad increasingly built around teenagers Tanvi Sharma and Unnati Hooda, both already inside the world's top 30 in singles.

Format

Badminton at Aichi-Nagoya runs across two phases.

The team events open the programme from September 20 to 24, with the women's and men's competitions run as knockouts decided over multiple rubbers singles and doubles matches within each tie.

The five individual events take over from September 25, run as straight knockouts from the early rounds through to the September 29 finals.

China enter as defending champions in the men's team event.

Indian squad

Men's team: Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, HS Prannoy, Kidambi Srikanth, Tharun Mannepalli, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, Hariharan Amsakarunan, Arjun Ramachandran, Dhruv Kapila.

Women's team: PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda, Devika Sihag, Tanvi Sharma, Isharani Baruah, Treesa Jolly, Gayatri Gopichand, Kavipriya Selvam, Simran Singhi, Tanisha Crasto.

Individual Events

Men's singles: Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty.

Women's singles: PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda.

Men's doubles: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty, Hariharan Amsakarunan-Arjun Ramachandran.

Women's doubles: Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand, Kavipriya Selvam-Simran Singhi.

Mixed doubles: Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto.

Schedule (IST)

20 September - Women's team, Round of 16, 6:00 AM

21 September - Men's team, Round of 16, 6:00 AM

22 September - Women's team quarterfinals, 6:00 AM; men's team quarterfinals, 11:30 AM

23 September - Women's team semifinals, 6:00 AM; men's team semifinals, 11:30 AM

24 September - Women's team final, 6:00 AM; men's team final, time listed as 12:30 PM

25 September - Men's and women's singles Round of 64; men's and women's doubles Round of 32; mixed doubles Round of 16, from 6:00 AM

26 September - Men's and women's singles Round of 32 and Round of 16; men's and women's doubles Round of 16, from 6:00 AM

27 September - Quarterfinals, 6:00 AM

28 September - Semifinals, 6:00 AM

29 September - Finals, 7:30 AM

Where to watch

Sony Sports Network holds exclusive broadcast rights to the Asian Games 2026 in India, with live coverage across its Sony Sports channels and streaming on SonyLIV.