The Indian men's squash team suffered a 2-1 defeat to Malaysia in the semifinal of the men's team event at the Asian Games 2026 at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena on Thursday.
Velavan Senthilkumar's defeat to Ameeshenraj Chandaran in the third match sealed the tie in Malaysia's favour. Senthilkumar went down 1-3 (12-10, 6-11, 8-11, 9-11), ending India's hopes of defending the gold medal it won three years ago.
India's top seed Abhay Singh was also beaten by Eain Yow Ng in the opening match of the tie. Ng secured a 3-0 (11-8, 11-8, 11-8) victory over Singh in a rematch of the men's singles final from earlier in the Asian Games.
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Veer Chotrani kept India's hopes alive by beating Jeeva Sanjay 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 11-5) in the second match. His victory levelled the tie and forced the contest into the deciding third match, but Senthilkumar could not complete the comeback against Chandaran.
Senthilkumar, the higher-ranked player, was beaten by Chandaran, who produced a strong performance on the day to win 10-12, 11-6, 11-8, 11-9 and send Malaysia into the final against Pakistan.
The defeat means India will not be able to retain the men's team gold medal from the previous Asian Games.
Earlier on Thursday, the Indian women's squash team, comprising Anahat Singh, Joshna Chinappa and Tanvi Khanna, also settled for a bronze medal after losing to Hong Kong, China in the semifinal of the women's team event.
In the opening match, world No. 17 Anahat Singh suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Hong Kong, China's Sin Yuk Chan despite having four match points. Anahat eventually lost the thrilling contest 2-3 (11-9, 11-8, 6-11, 11-13, 10-12).
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Tanvi Khanna then scripted a comeback in the second match, beating world No. 40 Ka Yi Lee 3-1 (4-11, 13-11, 11-9, 13-11) to keep India's hopes alive in the three-match tie.
However, veteran Joshna Chinappa could not match the pace and quality of world No. 39 Ho Tze Lok in the deciding match. The 40-year-old Indian lost 0-3 in straight games, as Hong Kong, China secured a place in the final.
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