Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly, who won a medal in the recent World championships, will be eyeing a good show in the Asian Games in Japan.
| Photo Credit: File photo: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
Saina Nehwal believes that P.V. Sindhu’s big match temperament will hold her in good stead at the 2026 Asian Games.
After a dip in fortunes, Sindhu produced a vintage performance to clinch the Japan Open title a few months ago. The 31-year-old became the first Indian shuttler to win the Japan Open, on the back of an impressive straight games win over local favourite Akane Yamaguchi in the final.
“Sometimes, at the highest level, you go up and down over one or two years. But having won the Japan Open, and coming close to defeating Wang Zhi in the World Championship round-of-16, I think Sindhu has a very good chance of winning at the Asian Games,” Saina said in a virtual media interaction on Friday.
“And it’s in Japan, where she has always performed well. She is experienced. She is a big tournament player; I’ve never seen her getting tense. She is always very disciplined and she concentrates very well,” Saina, the first Indian woman badminton player to reach the World No.1 ranking, added.
Saina expects the Indian contingent to return home with at least three medals. “We have winners in most events – Sindhu, Tanvi (Sharma) and Ashmita (Chaliha), Ayush (Shetty) in men’s singles, and the men’s doubles combination of Satwik and Chirag. Treesa (Jolly) and Gayatri (Gopichand) won the bronze medal in the World Championships. Overall, the team looks very strong and confident. Of course, there are big expectations in these big tournaments, which adds a little bit more pressure. But I would say that we can definitely come back with three medals at least,” Saina said.
(Watch Asian Games 2026 starting September 19, 2026, live and exclusive on Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV).
Published – September 19, 2026 08:01 am IST
