Nearly two decades later, Aditi Chauhan retires as a trailblazer, having become the first Indian woman to play professional football in Europe.
Having won the gold way back in 2014, the team is targeting the top of the podium.
The men's team comprises Grandmasters D Gukesh, Gujrathi, Erigaisi, P Harikrishna and R Praggnanandhaa.
When the Asian Games was delayed by a year owing to the COVID-19 situation in China, it wreaked havoc with the schedule of many athletes, but for Indian sailor Neha Thakur, it proved to be a blessing in disguise.
Talisman Sunil Chhetri, senior defender Sandesh Jhingan and first-choice goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu were on Tuesday named in a 22-member Indian men's football squad for the upcoming Asian Games.
The Indian women thus avenged their 0-1 defeat against Japan in the last edition of the Games in Jakarta in 2018.
The Indian men's table tennis team of Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, Achanta Sharath Kamal and Harmeet Desai started their Asian Games campaign on a resounding note, as they demolished Yemen 3-0.
Earlier in the day, the Indian women's table tennis team of Diya Parag Chitale, Ayhika Mukherjee and Sutirtha Mukherjee scripted a facile 3-0 victory over Nepal.
The reigning world champion duo of Chen Meng and Wang Yidi gasped in surprise seeing the backhand return of Ayhika Mukherjee, who, in part, engineered India's biggest triumph of the Asian Games thus far.
While Ghosal defeated Altamimi 11-4, 11-4, 11-6, Mangaonkar edged past Tsukue 11-6 11-2 11-6 in another pre-quarterfinal match.
Double Olympic bronze-medallist shooter Bhaker finished sixth in 25m pistol after entering the eight-shooter final placed fifth with an aggregate 'precision' and 'rapid fire' score of 588.
Following is India's schedule at the Asian Games in Hangzhou on Friday, September 29.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manika Batra progressed to the women's singles quarter-finals but veterans Sharath Kamal and Gnanasekaran Sathiyan crashed out.
Shivam Dube, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma and Prabhsimran Singh are the others who have been picked at the back of a stellar IPL.
The Army chief expressed profound pride in the incredible achievements of the Army's sportspersons.
Arjun Lal Jat and Arvind Singh won a silver medal in the men's lightweight doubles sculls event in rowing at the Asian Games.
Jyothi Surekha Vennam used all her experience to prevail over her team-mate Aditi Swami to advance to the women's compound individual final at the Asian Games.
Young wrestler Antim Panghal, who challenged stalwart Vinesh Phogat in the Asian Games trials, is determined to prove a point in the continental showpiece and the subsequent World Championships.
Sunday also proved to be a good day for Delhi's star 400m runner Amoj Jacob, whose winning time was 45.92 seconds.
Led by Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra, India will seek to showcase its ascendency as a sporting power at the Asian Games, which opens formally on Saturday after an unprecedented one-year delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But new faces, such as world champion 10m air rifle shooter Rudrankksh Patil, Esha Singh (10m air pistol), Sift Kaur Samra and Ashi Chouksey (50m rifle 3-positions) are some of the brightest prospects in the team with a potential to aim for gold, notwithstanding the extremely tough challenge the Chinese will pose in the coming fortnight.
Pak hockey team must play in India and India should reciprocate: Ex-Pak captain Butt
Counter-puncher Sumit Nagal blunted the challenge of big-serving Beibit Zhukayev with his perseverance while Ankita Raina outgunned Adithya P Karunaratne without fuss as the two Indians inched closer to singles medals.
India's other gold medals came in 1966 and 1998, both times in Bangkok.
Vithya Ramraj equalled the legendary P T Usha's national record in the women's 400m hurdles.
'Yes, of course, there is little expectation on the results, but I am more focussed on my performance rather than the outcome because, in sports, anything can happen.'
Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat should be withdrawn from India's Asian Games squad if they lose the upcoming trials for the World Championships.
The national football team is currently ranked 18th in Asia and the sports ministry's rule states that in team sport, only those in top-eight will get the nod.
Kiran Baliyan became the first Indian woman to win an Asian Games medal in shot put event in 72 years.
Indian long-distance runners Kartik Kumar and Gulveer Singh bagged a silver and bronze medal respectively in the men's 10000m race with personal best times at the Asian Games in Hangzhou on Saturday.
India outclassed South Korea 5-3 in a hard-fought semi-final to enter the gold medal clash of the men's hockey competition at the Asian Games.
Star Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who pulled out of Asian Games due to a knee injury, on Thursday underwent a surgery in Mumbai and vowed to come back stronger.
Indonesia are at the top of group A while Mongolia are at the bottom. In Group B, Malaysia are on top of the table.
'The football teams have also been given a relaxation, and so, Dipa too should be considered. We have received positive response from SAI. She is likely to get cleared this week.'
The 23-year-old Samra, who holds the current world record in women's 50 metre rifle three positions event which she had set while winning the gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games, shot 453.1 in the eight-player final.
The Indian men's and women's Coxless Four team advanced to the final along with the men's coxed eights team, to keep themselves in the hunt for the medal.
P V Sindhu and H S Prannoy sailed into the quarter-finals of the women's and men's singles badminton event with easy victories at the Asian Games.
A look at NADA's list of suspended athletes reveals that wrestling has the second most dope offenders among all sporting disciplines in India.
India's singles tennis players will return empty-handed from the Asian Games for the first time since 2006.
Neeraj Chopra will be the cynosure of all eyes as India begins its athletics campaign in the Asian Games
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