Srihari Nataraj qualifies for men’s 50m backstroke final at Asian Games

Asian Games 2026 Srihari Nataraj swimming men’s 50m backstroke Indian athletes

Indian swimmer Srihari Nataraj has qualified for the men’s 50m backstroke final at the 2026 Asian Games. Nataraj, a two-time Olympian, clocked a time of 25.37 seconds to finish joint-ninth overall in the heats.

Other Indian swimming performances included Rishabh Das, who finished 10th overall in the 50m backstroke heats with a time of 25.41 seconds, placing him as the first reserve for the final. Das had previously qualified for the men’s 100m backstroke final on Sunday with a time of 54.85 seconds.

Several other Indian swimmers failed to advance to their respective finals. In the men’s 50m freestyle, Akash Mani and Heer Gitesh Shah finished 26th and 28th. Danush Suresh finished 22nd in the men’s 100m breaststroke, and the Indian men’s 4x200m freestyle relay team was named the first reserve after failing to qualify.

In other sports, the Indian sepaktakraw team secured a 2-0 victory over Japan in their opening regu-match series in Group B.

Entities

Asian Games · Hidekazu Takehara · India · Japan · Rishabh Das · Srihari Nataraj · Xu Jiayu

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[● 2 SOURCES] The Indian women's table tennis team defeated Indonesia 3-0 in their opening match.
[● 2 SOURCES] India's teqball campaign ended without a medal following losses in the mixed doubles and women's singles bronze-medal playoffs.
[● 4 SOURCES] Rohit Benedicton finished 12th overall in the men's 100m freestyle heats with a time of 50.25 seconds. www.news18.com
[● 4 SOURCES] Akash Mani finished 23rd overall in the men's 100m freestyle heats with a time of 50.85 seconds. www.news18.com
[● 4 SOURCES] Utkarsh Patil finished 12th overall with a time of 56.19 seconds, missing the final. www.news18.com
[● 4 SOURCES] Rishabh Das qualified for the men's 100m backstroke final at the Asian Games. www.news18.com
[● 4 SOURCES] Xu Jiayu of China topped the overall standings with a time of 52.63 seconds. www.news18.com
[● 4 SOURCES] Rishabh Das finished fifth overall in the heats with a time of 54.85 seconds. www.news18.com