10 Top Indian athletes who might struggle to win medal at Asian Games 2023

The Asian Games 2023 will officially commence in the city of Hangzhou in China on September 23, with a glitzy ceremony at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium. There will be more than 12,000 athletes competing from 45 countries at the multi-sporting continental games, across 40 sporting disciplines. India will be fielding 655 athletes in all sports at the Asiad, with an aim to finish with their highest medal tally in history. There are many athletes in the Indian contingent, who have qualified through to the event, but they aren’t in the best of forms going into it. Also read: Asian Games Medal Tally 2023 In this feature article, SportsTiger looks at the 10 Top Indian athletes who might struggle for the Asian Games 2023. 1. Sunil Chhetri - Men’s Football Even when Sunil Chhetri, the captain of India put away the penalty to secure an all-important win against Bangladesh in the Group stage of the men’s football competition, his chances to secure a medal for the team are slim. The Indians started the tournament on a tough note with a defeat against China by 5-1, while the competition is expected to get tougher in the near future. #PAGE_BREAK# 2. Ashwini Ponnappa - Women’s Badminton (Doubles) Ashwini Ponnappa, who was part of one of the most successful women’s doubles pairs in badminton in India with Jwala Gutta, has taken up the new challenge of parenting up with Tanisha Crasto, after ending her futile stint with N. Sikki Reddy recently. The 34-year-old has also partnered with B. Sumeeth Reddy in the mixed doubles, with no success on the tour either. #PAGE_BREAK# 3. Shiva Thapa - Men’s Boxing The former bronze medalist in the IBA World Boxing Championships in 2015, Shiva Thapa hasn’t had big success in the amateur scene in recent times. The 29-year-old has six medals in the Asian Championships, but he has yet to win a medal in the multi-sporting continental games in his entire career. #PAGE_BREAK# 4. Seema Punia - Women’s Discus Throw Seema Punia, the multi-time medal winner at the Asian Games, qualified for Hangzhou, China, on the back of a spirited performance at the Qosanov Memorial athletics meet in Almaty, Kazakhstan, this June. But, the 39-year-old will be facing stiff competition from the field in the Asiad, to secure her third straight medal in women’s discus throw. #PAGE_BREAK# 5. Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam - Men’s Cycling (Sprint) Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam, who became an overnight sensation in India, because of a similar name to the footballing great Cristiano Ronaldo, is set to compete in his first Asian Games this year. The 21-year-old isn’t expected to win a medal in the men’s cycling sprint event in Hangzhou 2023, due to the quality of the opposition, but he could gain valuable experience to propel his career to greater heights in the near future. #PAGE_BREAK# 6. Atanu Das - Men’s Archery (Recurve) The standard of archery in the recurve section has gone down in India in recent times, amidst the rise of compound archers in the country, a phenomenon which is true for Atanu Das too. Therefore, the 31-year-old has a tough task to ensure that Team India grabs a medal in recurve section at the Asian Games, for the first time since Guangzhou 2010. #PAGE_BREAK# 7. Kishore Kumar Jena - Men’s Javelin Throw While Kishore Kumar Jena is one of the top-performing men’s javelin throwers for India, he isn’t an odds-on favourite to win the medal at the Asian Games 2023. His fellow countryman Neeraj Chopra and Arshad Nadeem from Pakistan, the top two medalists at the World Athletics Championships earlier this year, are expected to take the podium in the Asiad, which will leave a little scope of error for the 28-year-old in the competition. #PAGE_BREAK# 8. Manisha Kalyan - Women’s Football Manisha Kalyan, one of the biggest players of the India women’s football team, was a part of the 2-1 defeat in their first group game at the Asian Games 2023 against the Chinese Taipei. Hence, the 21-year-old has her task cut out in helping the team qualify for the knockouts from the group stage, while the chance of winning the medal in the Asiad isn’t looking good currently. #PAGE_BREAK# 9. David Beckham Elkatohchoongo - Men’s Cycling (Sprint) Just like his teammate Ronaldo Singh Laitonjam, the men’s cycling sprint competitor David Beckham Elkatohchoongo got the fame for his name being directly associated with one of the best football players from England. The 20-year-old will be taking on the best of Asia in Hangzhou, during the continental games, which would put him in a tough spot to secure a medal for the country. #PAGE_BREAK# 10. PV Sindhu - Women’s Badminton (Singles) PV Sindhu, the former multi-time medalist at the Asian Games, was a runner-up at the Jakarta-Palembang 2018 in women’s singles, but the times have drastically changed in the last five years. While you can never write off the 28-year-old from finishing on the podium at any badminton tournament, she hasn’t been in the best of forms recently, which puts her chances of taking something from Hangzhou at an all-time low.

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10 Top Indian athletes who might struggle to win medal at Asian Games 2023