Aichi-Nagoya, Sept. 22 -- India have been assured a medal in the men's team badminton event at the Asian Games 2026 after defeating hosts Japan 3-0 in the quarterfinals on Tuesday, with Lakshya Sen, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty and Ayush Shetty winning their respective matches.

Lakshya gave India a 1-0 lead after recovering from a game down to defeat Japan's Kodai Naraoka in a thrilling three-game encounter. Sen lost the opening game 11-21 but bounced back strongly in the second, racing to a 19-4 lead before taking it 21-5 to force a decider.

The Indian shuttler found himself trailing 8-14 in the deciding game but produced a strong comeback to level the score at 19-19 before winning the game 21-19 and putting India ahead.

The ...