Jay Meena Makes History with India's First Asian Games Soft Tennis Medal
In Nagoya, on a bright Wednesday that will sit in Indian soft tennis folklore, Jay Meena finally stepped out of the shadows.
Playing in his third Asian Games, the 32-year-old ground his way into the men’s singles semi-finals at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, sealing India’s first-ever medal in soft tennis at the continental showpiece. No wild celebrations, no theatrics. Just a clenched fist and the quiet knowledge that he had changed the record books.
The breakthrough came at the end of a seven-game epic against the Philippines’ Sherwin Nuguit, a quarter-final that swung violently before Meena dragged it his way with sheer stubbornness and nerve. The final scoreline read 4-3 in the Indian’s favour, but that barely scratched the surface of the drama.
He started poorly and paid for it. Nuguit came out sharper, and Meena dropped the opening game 0-4, a brutal wake-up call in a match where every point felt loaded. The Indian responded with intent, tightening his strokes and attacking the net more decisively to take the second 4-2.
Just as he seemed to have found his rhythm, the contest twisted again. Nuguit wrested back control, edging the third game 4-2 and pushing Meena to the brink. The rallies lengthened, the margins shrank, and every error drew a groan from the small but vocal Indian contingent in the stands.
Meena refused to blink. He clawed his way through the fourth game 5-3, only to see Nuguit hit back once more, 4-2 in the fifth. The pressure was suffocating. One mistake now, and the Indian’s dream of an Asian Games medal would vanish for a third time after his earlier campaigns in 2018 and 2022.
Instead, the match turned into a test of resolve. In the sixth and seventh games, Meena dug into every ounce of experience he had banked over two previous editions. He dragged the sixth 7-5, then held his nerve again in the decider, closing out the contest 7-5 in a gripping finish that underlined his mental steel.
The 4-3 win did more than just push him into the last four. It guaranteed India a place on the soft tennis podium for the first time in Asian Games history, a landmark for a sport that has lived on the fringes of the country’s sporting consciousness.
This was not a bolt from the blue. Meena had been quietly efficient in the group stages, where he dismantled Pakistan’s Arain Hussain 4-0 in men’s singles Group D to book his quarter-final spot. That performance hinted at form. The Nuguit win confirmed it.
Now comes the bigger stage: a semi-final with the stakes raised and the possibility of a gold medal match dangling in front of him. Whatever happens next, the bronze is already in the bag. But Meena has not battled through three Asian Games just to settle for history alone. He has a shot at more, and he knows it.
Shooting range delivers again
While Meena was rewriting Indian history on the soft tennis courts, the shooting range continued to do what it has so often done for India at multi-sport events: deliver medals.
In the women’s skeet team event, Raiza Dhillon, Parinaaz Dhaliwal and Maheshwari Chauhan combined with cold precision to secure a bronze medal with a total of 331 points. It was a performance built on consistency rather than fireworks.
Raiza and Parinaaz both posted 111 out of 125, steady and reliable across their rounds. Maheshwari added 109, ensuring India stayed in the medal mix even as China and Kazakhstan pulled away at the top. China took gold with a commanding 346, Kazakhstan claimed silver, but India’s trio did enough to stand on the podium and add another shooting medal to the country’s tally in Nagoya.
On another lane, Manu Bhaker quietly moved into familiar territory: a major final. The two-time Olympic medallist produced a strong qualification series to reach the women’s 10m air pistol individual final, once again underlining her status as one of India’s most dependable big-stage performers.
There was disappointment too. Suruchi Inder Singh and Esha Singh, both capable of making deep runs on their day, fell short of the final cut in the same event. On this occasion, the margins were unforgiving.
Yet the day belonged to the outlier story. To a soft tennis player who had waited through two previous Asian Games for his moment. To a sport that rarely grabs headlines back home.
Jay Meena has ensured that, at least for one edition, soft tennis will not be an afterthought in India’s Asian Games narrative. The question now is simple: can he turn a historic medal into something even bigger?
