Five Indian debutants to look out for in the Hangzhou Asian Games

This year, the 19th Asian Games will take place in Hangzhou, China, from September 23 to October 8. While a few team sports, like football, volleyball, and rowing, began competing on September 19, the Games will really get going on Saturday.

The Asian Games, which were postponed by a year owing to the Covid-19 epidemic, have served as a platform for numerous young athletes to declare their entry into the top division. There have been many stars to come out of the continental contest every four years, and although some have already earned their names in other high-profile competitions, many will be anticipating a brilliant debut in the coveted event.

There are a few intriguing Indian athletes who will be vying for podium positions in their first competitions in their respective sports. Nikhat Zareen, the current world and Commonwealth Games champion in boxing, Harmilan Bains, a long-distance runner from Punjab, and a few more are at the top of the list. Five Indian debutants to watch at the Asian Games are listed below:

Boxing: Nikhat Zareen

Nikhat Zareen, the current world and Commonwealth champion, will compete in her first Asian Games event in the women’s 50kg weight category. Nikhat has emerged from the shadow of the illustrious MC Mary Kom in her category during the last few years, and she seems to be a strong candidate for the gold medal in Hangzhou.

The 27-year-old Nizamabad resident, who is competing for an Olympic quota, will also try to lock down her spot in Paris 2024 by taking first place at the Asian Games.

Harmilan Kaur Bains – 800 and 1500 meter women

Harmilan Kaur Bains, who holds the national record in the women’s 1500-meter race, will compete in two events (the 800-meter run and the 1500-meter run) at the Asian Games in Hangzhou after missing out on the opportunity to represent India at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham owing to a knee ailment.

Harmilan recently made a comeback, winning a silver medal in the Birmingham University Grand Prix in July. She also competed in other competitions in the UK, at Manchester and Loughborough. In both the 800 and 1500 meters in the national championships held in Bhubaneswar in June, Harmilan qualified for the Asian Games. She ran the 1500 meters in 4:08.50.

She is thus India’s medal contender in the 800 m and 1500 m events, despite consistently dominating the latter.

Jyothi Yarraji – 200m, 100m hurdles for women

Jyothi Yarraji, who holds the women’s 100-meter hurdles national record, will compete in her first Asian Games in Hangzhou. She is the first Indian woman to finish the race in under 13 seconds. At the World University Games in Chengdu last month, Jyothi ran a 12.78-second personal best in the 100-meter hurdles. She has a solid chance of making the podium in her first Games as a result.

The 24-year-old from Visakhapatnam competed in both the 200-meter and the 400-meter events at the Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok earlier this year, and she will compete in both events in Hangzhou.

FIFA Online 4’s Charanjot Singh

One of the seven official Esports competitions at this edition, FIFAe, has Indian athlete Charanjot Singh as the top seed. After being a showcase discipline in the Asian Games in Jakarta five years ago, esports will be featured for the first time in Hangzhou.

Charanjot, a Chandigarh native, won convincing matches over Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka in August to claim the top seed position. He also competed for India in the 2023 FIFA Nations Cup.

Squash player Anahat Singh

The youngest Indian participant in the Indian team’s preparations for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games was Anahat Singh last year. Anahat, who is now 15 years old, plans to make a spectacular Asian Games debut.

Anahat will want to capitalize on the experience of competing in the nation when she begins her campaign in the women’s squash competition of the Asian Games. Anahat recently won the gold medal in the U-17 division of the Asian Junior Squash Individual Championships in China last month.

The Delhi girl won the U-15 division of the British Junior Open Squash earlier this year after defeating Egypt’s Sohaila Hazem in the championship match.