Asian Games 2026: No tennis medal, and a 40-year Indian sporting decline laid bare

Even as fans locked in on multiple Indian athletes at the Asian Games, Sumit Nagal’s quarterfinal exit barely caused a flutter. Yet, that quiet departure confirmed something profoundly unsettling: for the first time in 40 years, India would leave the Games without a tennis medal of any colour.

As the 20th Asian Games wind up today, every sport will begin a post-mortem. Tennis, however, finds itself at a particularly sombre intersection. This barren outcome is a stark reminder of a dispiriting story of India’s shrinking presence at the highest levels, and the reassurance once provided by doubles success vanishing.

Nagal lost in straight sets to China’s Wu Yibing. The men’s doubles combinations had already fallen in the quarterfinals, and mixed doubles offered no respite. The sport that had delivered medals at every Asian Games since 1990 could not find a single podium this time.


In Hangzhou three years ago, India still had a mixed doubles gold and a men’s doubles silver. The temptation would be to scrutinise specific pairings, difficult draws or selection calls. However, a sport does not arrive at this stage because of one decision or an indifferent afternoon. The uncomfortable question to tackle is why a country with such a rich tennis culture has been in what appears to be terminal decline.

It’s worth recalling the inheritance. Ramanathan Krishnan reached successive Wimbledon semifinals while Vijay Amritraj and Ramesh Krishnan gave supporters reason to follow singles draws with genuine anticipation. India reached three Davis Cup finals, and the competition produced afternoons of improbable defiance that became part of our sporting memory.

Leander Paes sizzled to an Olympic singles bronze and with Mahesh Bhupathi made Grand Slam doubles triumphs feel wonderfully familiar, even when they played with different partners. Sania Mirza reached the singles top 30 and became a multiple major champion in doubles and mixed doubles. Rohan Bopanna soldiered on into his 40s, winning slams and reaching the top spot of the doubles rankings.

Tennis demanded attention from fans with regular successes. Today, even getting into a major’s singles main draw seems a bridge too far. Nagal did play all four Slams in 2024 and the Australian Open in 2025, but despite his valiant efforts, India has failed to establish a sustained singles presence. Among the women, not a single player has come close to Mirza’s standing.

For years, doubles provided succour as there was usually an Indian to follow deep into a major. Bopanna’s retirement last year exposed how much reassurance rested on one remarkable veteran. There are capable successors with Yuki Bhambri’s US Open semifinal in 2025 deserving of applause, but the reality is that India no longer possesses the depth to compete consistently with the best in the world.

Nagoya demands the crisis be acknowledged, and then addressed. The response must extend beyond demanding greater commitment from the players. Tennis requires expensive travel, sustained coaching and access to tournaments where players can accumulate experience and ranking points. How effectively are promising juniors supported through the difficult transition to professional tennis?

Who shares the financial risk with families? What measurable responsibility does the federation accept for developing the next generation? These are questions that require a plan, funding and accountability. Tennis can no longer assume it will stay relevant in Indian sporting life simply because it once occupied that space so proudly. Pickleball and padel are attracting recreational players, investment and court space. Their popularity need not harm tennis, but it creates competition for people’s time and money.

Without newly minted Indian heroes and an accessible route into the game, the sport risks losing participants as well as spectators. A dark future looms unless the repair job begins urgently. The fear that a sport that once occupied the centre-stage in India’s sporting consciousness may slip away into oblivion is all too real.