Asian Games 2026: India defeat Pakistan 3-0 in men’s table tennis Group F

India's men's table tennis team beat Pakistan 3-0 at the Sky Hall Toyota in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, in their final Group F fixture of the Asian Games 2026 on Monday, September 21. Harmeet Desai, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran and Payas Jain each won their singles matches in straight games, securing the overall victory before the doubles were contested.

India opened their Group F campaign with a 3-0 victory over Indonesia but then suffered a 3-0 loss to Iran in their next match, a result that dented their chances of reaching the knockout stages. The win over Pakistan was therefore decisive for India’s progression from the group.

Harmeet Desai provided an early lead for India by defeating Muhammad Khan 11-4, 11-3, 11-5 in the tie’s opening singles match.

Sathiyan Gnanasekaran followed with a straight-games win against Abbas Khan, prevailing 11-1, 11-8, 11-9; Sathiyan was part of the bronze-winning India team at the 2018 Asian Games alongside Desai.

21-year-old Payas Jain completed the one-sided result by beating Muhammad Khan 11-2, 11-5, 11-7 in the final singles match.

The victory over Pakistan ensured India progressed to the Round of 16.

The table tennis competition at the Asian Games is being held from September 19 to October 4, 2026, in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

India are currently top of Group F with five points from three matches. Iran are second with three points, Indonesia are third with three points, while Pakistan remain bottom with three points.