India’s campaign at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, officially got underway on September 17, 2026, two days before the opening ceremony. The first Indian athletes in action are the men’s doubles teqball pair of Declan Marshall Gonsalves and Mohamed Anas Imran Beg.
Teqball, a relatively new sport that combines elements of freestyle football and table tennis on a curved table, is making its Asian Games debut. Five medal events (men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s doubles, and mixed doubles) are being contested from September 17 to 20.
Opening Day Schedule (IST)
12:30 PM: Gonsalves / Beg vs Truong Giang Ba / Anh Khoa Le (Vietnam) – Group B
1:00 PM: Gonsalves / Beg vs Junsuk Lee / Taebeen Lee (Republic of Korea) – Group B
Later: Possible quarter-finals or repechage (subject to group results)
Venue: Nagoya City Higashi Sports Center.
Gonsalves and Beg are already World Championships medallists, having won bronze in men’s doubles at the 2024 event in Vietnam — India’s first medal in the sport. India has a three-member teqball squad; Quimcy Dsouza will compete in women’s singles and partner Beg in mixed doubles in the coming days.
The Asian Games run from September 19 to October 4, 2026, with several disciplines starting earlier. India has sent a contingent of around 503 athletes across multiple sports. The men’s doubles teqball pair carries the nation’s hopes as the first competitors to take the court.