NEW DELHI: India enjoyed another productive day at the Commonwealth Games 2026 on Saturday, with boxer Sachin Siwach advancing to the pre-quarterfinals and the women’s lawn bowls pair of Rupa Rani Tirkey and Pinki Singh extending their unbeaten run to stay firmly on course for the semifinals.A day after para powerlifter Jhandu Kumar opened India’s medal account with a bronze medal, Indian athletes produced a series of encouraging performances across boxing, lawn bowls and gymnastics, although there were disappointments in swimming and wheelchair basketball.With Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu set to begin her title defence on Sunday, India will look to build on the positive momentum.
Boxing: Sachin Siwach clears opening hurdle
One of India’s brightest medal hopes in boxing, Sachin Siwach, survived a stiff challenge from Canada’s Keoma Al-Ahmadieh to progress to the men’s 60kg pre-quarterfinals.
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The 26-year-old prevailed 4-1 in a split verdict in the round of 32 at Glasgow’s SEC Centre, overcoming an opponent he had beaten twice before.“It was a tough bout but I had beaten him twice before so I was pretty confident,” Sachin said. “It was important for me to defeat him today because it was at the Commonwealth Games.”Siwach will next face England’s William Hewitt in the round of 16.
India’s Pinki Singh, left, and Rupa Rani Tirkey. (PTI Photo)
Lawn bowls: Rupa-Pinki remain unbeaten, Sonowal suffers first defeat
India’s women’s pairs combination of Rupa Rani Tirkey and Pinki Singh continued their impressive campaign with a third consecutive victory in Section B.The Birmingham 2022 gold medallists defeated Tonga 2-0 in a tie-break after sharing the two sets, strengthening their chances of reaching the semifinals.The Indians won the opening set 5-2 before Tonga bounced back to take the second 6-4. Rupa and Pinki, however, held their nerve in the tie-break to secure victory.The Indian duo now shares three wins from three matches with England but trails the latter on sets won. They will take on Namibia in their fourth sectional match on Sunday.There was disappointment in the men’s singles, where Putul Sonowal suffered his first defeat of the campaign.The Assam Police officer lost 0-2 (4-8, 8-9) to Malaysia’s Izzat Shameer Dzulkeple despite producing a spirited fightback in the second set after trailing 5-9.Sonowal, who stunned reigning world champion Ryan Bester in his opening match and followed it up with another hard-fought victory, remains second in the Section D standings ahead of his clash against Malta’s Shaun James Parnis.
Artistic gymnastics: India finish fifth in Subdivision 3
India’s women’s artistic gymnastics team of Pranati Nayak, Nishka Agarwal, Eshita Rewale and Protistha Samanta completed their qualification campaign with a combined score of 29.850 in the floor exercise.The quartet finished with an overall tally of 123.000 points after all four apparatus to place fifth after Subdivision 3 in the women’s team and individual qualification competition.The gymnasts had earlier competed in the vault, uneven bars and balance beam before concluding their campaign on the floor.
Swimming: Indian duo miss 400m freestyle final
India’s challenge in the pool ended early as both Dhakshan Shashikumar and Aryan Nehra failed to progress to the men’s 400m freestyle final.Shashikumar clocked 3:58.09 to finish 15th overall among 27 swimmers, while Nehra placed 16th in 4:00.26.Although Shashikumar was seventh midway through his heat, he could not maintain the pace required to qualify.
Wheelchair basketball: Wales outclass India
India endured another difficult outing in the women’s wheelchair basketball competition, suffering a comprehensive 1-16 defeat to Wales in their Group B fixture.The Indian team struggled to cope with Wales’ intensity throughout the contest, converting only one of their 12 scoring attempts as their opponents dominated from start to finish.
Mirabai Chanu headlines India’s Sunday hopes
Attention now shifts to the weightlifting arena, where Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu is expected to launch her Commonwealth Games campaign and begin the defence of her title.India enter the competition despite a disrupted build-up after its weightlifting squad was reduced from 16 to 11 following multiple doping violations, with Dilbag Singh (96kg) the latest lifter to be withdrawn.Even with the setbacks, India remain one of the strongest weightlifting nations at the Commonwealth Games, and Mirabai will be expected to spearhead another medal-winning day as the country looks to add to Jhandu Kumar’s historic bronze.
