Asian Games 2018: Probable Medals for India Today, 23rd August 2018

Rohan Bopanna
The pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan are potential gold medal contenders in Men's Doubles

The Indian contingent at the Asian Games 2018 being held in the cities of Jakarta and Palembang in Indonesia had a decent performance on the Day 4 of the quadrennial event across the various sporting events on the day. The athletes added a total of five medals on the day - one gold medal and four silver medals.

The gold medal was won by ace shooter Rahi Sarnobat in the Women's 25 metre Air Pistol competition becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in the shooting competitions of the Asian Games.

She was engrossed in a daunting battle for the top honours on the podium winning in the end with a Games record score of 34 in the finals. This gold medal came as an upgrade to her bronze medal finish four years ago at the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

The four bronze medals were won by the Indian combat athletes in the sport of Wushu. Santosh Kumar (56 kg), Surya Bhanu Pratap Singh (60 kg) and Narender Grewal (65 kg) and Naorem Roshibina Devi (60 kg) were the medal winners in the Wushu Sanda competition after losing their semifinal matches but managing to win the bronze medal for India, which were the first medals in the history for India in Wushu.

Today, a whole new bunch of athletes will be in contention for medal finishes at the Asian Games 2018 and we take a look at some of the probable medal-winning athletes who will take to the podium and raise the Indian flag in Indonesia.


Aruna Budda Reddy - Women's Vault (Artistic Gymnastics)

Indian gymnastic's most famous representative - Dipa Karmakar may have pulled out of her event citing a knee injury in a practice session, however, her fellow countrywoman Aruna Budda Reddy has kept the challenge going for the Indian women in the Women's Vault event of the Artistic Gymnastics section.

Aruna Reddy qualified comfortably for the finals and will be in the running for a podium finish.

Dattu Baban Bhokanal - Rowing (Men's Single Sculls)

The 27-year old Dattu Baban Bhokanal, who hails from the Indian state of Maharashtra was the only rower from India to qualify successfully for the Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil back in 2016.

He had secured qualification for the Rio Olympics after winning a silver medal in the Men's Single Sculls rowing competition at the FISA Asian and Oceania Olympic Qualification Regatta held in South Korea. Dattu Bhokanal has been a solid performer for Indian rowing contingent on the world stage and will pose a stiff challenge for a medal finish at the Asian Games this year.

Varsha Varman - Shooting (Women's Double Trap Event)

The bronze medalist from the Asian Games in 2014 held in Incheon, South Korea has qualified for the finals and will be raring to improvise her finish this year.

She had created the junior world record in the Asian Games during her bronze medal finish four years ago and will be a solid contender for the podium finish this year as well.

Shreyasi Singh - Shooting (Women's Double Trap Event)

The second qualifier from India in the Women's Double Trap event will be eager to add another gold medal to her kitty this year. Singh had won the gold medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games held in Australia earlier this year and a silver medal at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

She was also a part of the Double Trap team that won the bronze medal in the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon. Singh will have a lot of hopes pinned on her to deliver a medal this year and is a solid probable to finish with top honours.

Sathish Kumar Sivalingam - Weightlifting (Men's 77 kg category)

The weightlifter from the state of Tamil Nadu, Satish Kumar Sivalingam is one of the most touted contenders for delivering the gold medal for India in the Men's 77 kg category of the weightlifting competition.

Sathish Kumar has won two Commonwealth Games gold medals - 2014 Glasgow Games and most recently, the 2018 Gold Coast Games. In addition to these gold medals, he also has three gold medals at 2012, 2015 and 2017 Commonwealth Championships. He had qualified for the Rio Olympics but did not have a podium finish in Brazil.

However, an Asian Games medal has continued to elude him and Satish Kumar will be hoping to add it to his collection when he steps up today for the snatch and the clean and jerk.

Ankita Raina - Women's Singles Tennis

Ankita Raina managed to enter the semifinals of the Women's Singles event with a solid performance against Eudice Wong Chong from Hong Kong, China and has secured the bronze medal.

She will take on China's Zhang Shuai for a place in the final and a win will guarantee her a silver medal at the least.

Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan - Men's Doubles Tennis

The experienced pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan defeated the team from Chinese Taipei to enter the final four and guarantee a bronze medal from India.

The duo will count on their experience to overcome the challenge from the Japanese pairing of Kaito Uesugi and Sho Shimabukuro for a chance to play for the gold in the final.


Which of these probables do you think will end up with the gold on the podium? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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