Not every setback at the 2026 Asian Games has come in a closely fought final. Several Indian teams and athletes have exited earlier than expected in Nagoya, in results that raised eyebrows given India’s recent form in these disciplines.
## Table Tennis Men’s Early Exit
India’s men’s table tennis team, which includes experienced campaigners like Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Harmeet Desai, suffered group-stage defeats including a loss to Ireland before being eliminated by South Korea in the round of 16, a disappointing finish for a team with genuine medal pedigree.
## Sepak Takraw Struggles
India’s men’s regu sepak takraw team endured a difficult group stage, losing to Japan and then to Malaysia by identical 0-3 scorelines in their final group match, results that left the team with a difficult path forward in the competition.
## Soft Tennis Setbacks
Aadhya Tiwari lost 1-4 to Thailand’s Alisha Ziegler in the women’s singles group stage of soft tennis, while men’s competitor Aryan Thakur was beaten by Chinese Taipei’s Chen Po-yi in his own group stage contest, results that came despite India naming a strong five-member soft tennis squad for these Games.
## Wushu’s Quieter Campaigns
Beyond the higher-profile results elsewhere in wushu, Nyeman Wangsu finished 15th in the women’s Changquan final, a result that did not match India’s stronger showings in the Sanda discipline through Roshibina Devi’s run to the semifinals.
## Why These Losses Stand Out
Unlike closely contested medal-round defeats, these results came at earlier stages of competition, against opponents India might have expected to beat on current form. For more on India’s closer calls in the medal rounds, see our roundup of the athletes who missed out on medals at these Games.
## The Path Forward
With group stages and early rounds still ongoing across several sports, India has time to arrest some of these early setbacks before the competition concludes on October 4.