Mohamed Anas Imran Beg: Indian swimmer Rishabh Das booked his place in the men’s 100m backstroke final at the Asian Games after producing a strong performance in the heats on Sunday, finishing fifth overall with a time of 54.85 seconds.
Das finished third in Heat 3 and advanced to Monday’s final, keeping India’s hopes alive in the event. He finished 0.63 seconds behind second-placed Japanese swimmer Hidekazu Takehara, while China’s Asian record holder Xu Jiayu topped the overall standings in 52.63 seconds.
Compatriot Utkarsh Patil, however, narrowly missed out on a place in the final. Patil clocked 56.19 seconds to finish sixth in his heat and 12th overall, leaving him as a reserve for the final.
India endured a less encouraging outing in the men’s 100m freestyle heats. Rohit Benedicton finished fifth in Heat 5 with a timing of 50.25 seconds and was 12th overall, earning a reserve spot. Akash Mani finished eighth in the same heat in 50.85 seconds and did not advance.
Elsewhere, India enjoyed a winning start in the women’s team event in table tennis, defeating Indonesia 3-0. Sreeja Akula put India ahead in the opening match before Diya Chitale extended the advantage with an 11-9, 11-8, 11-5 victory over Almaira Nebuchadnezzar.
Yashaswini Ghorpade then completed the sweep, defeating Citra Rasmi 12-10, 11-4, 11-4. India will next face Singapore in their Group F encounter at 12:30 PM on Sunday.
Elsewhere, India enjoyed a winning start in the women’s team event in table tennis, defeating Indonesia 3-0. Sreeja Akula put India ahead in the opening match before Diya Chitale extended the advantage with an 11-9, 11-8, 11-5 victory over Almaira Nebuchadnezzar.
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With Das now through to the 100m backstroke final, Indian swimming will have another opportunity to challenge for honours when the event resumes on Monday.