Asian Games: Jay Meena scripts history with India’s first-ever soft tennis medal

Jay Meena secured India's first-ever soft tennis medal at the Asian Games, fetching a bronze after losing to Japan's Takuya Kurosaka in the men's singles semifinals in Nagoya on Wednesday (September 23).

Playing in his third Asian Games, the 26-year-old Meena produced a spirited fightback after falling three games behind but could not sustain the momentum, losing 2-4 (3-5, 1-4, 1-4, 4-1, 6-4, 1-4) to Kurosaka in the 45-minute clash.

Meena, who hails from Madhya Pradesh's Dewas and is a 2022 National Games gold-medallist, struggled to find his rhythm early on as Kurosaka established an advantage, winning the first two games 5-3 and 4-1.

Meena’s strong fightback

The Japanese player then moved further ahead, taking the third game 4-1 and leaving Meena with little margin for error.

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With his medal assured but a place in the final at stake, Meena mounted a strong fightback.

He responded by taking the fourth game 4-1, then edged a closely contested fifth game 6-4 to reduce the deficit and keep his hopes of a remarkable comeback alive.

However, Kurosaka regrouped in the sixth game and closed out the contest 4-1 to book his place in the final, while Meena had to settle for the bronze.

Earlier in the day, Meena had reached the semifinals after seeing off the Philippines' Sherwin Nuguit 4-3 (0-4, 4-2, 2-4, 4-2, 5-3, 2-4, 7-5) in a fiercely contested quarterfinal.

PM Modi hails Meena’s achievement

Meena had also participated in the 2018 and 2022 editions of the Asian Games.

He had earlier defeated Pakistan's Arain Hussain 4-0 in Group D to qualify for the quarterfinals. Meena previously won a bronze medal in the mixed doubles event of the 2024 World Soft Tennis Championship.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed Meena’s historic achievement and called it a new chapter in Indian sport.

“A historic achievement for Indian Soft Tennis! Congratulations to Jay Meena on winning Bronze in the Men’s Individual event and becoming India’s first-ever Asian Games medallist in Soft Tennis. His achievement marks a memorable new chapter for the sport in India. May this medal inspire many more youngsters to take up Soft Tennis and excel. Best wishes to him for the journey ahead,” Modi said, as per a post on X by Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

(With agency inputs)