October 2 wrap: Archery, hockey teams script history as India win 6 gold medals

October 2 turned into a golden day for India at the Asian Games, with six gold medals coming across hockey, boxing, wrestling and archery. The haul was headlined by the women's hockey team's historic triumph over China, while three Indian boxers and wrestler Sujeet Kalkal also stood on top of the podium.

The day's medal rush began early with the recurve archers and continued through the afternoon before the women's hockey team provided a fitting finale. India also added two silver medals in archery and bronze medals in sailing and sepaktakraw.

By the end of the day, India's medal tally stood at 76, comprising 16 gold, 25 silver and 35 bronze medals. India also stormed into fifth place in the overall standings after China, Japan, South Korea and Uzbekistan. Courtesy: Asian Games

Indian boxing produced arguably the most impressive single-sport performance of the day, with Lovlina Borgohain, Parveen Hooda and Ankush Panghal all winning gold medals.

Lovlina opened India's golden run in the ring by beating China's Bao Ziyi in the women's 75kg final. The victory came on her 29th birthday and made her only the second Indian woman after Mary Kom to win an Asian Games boxing gold. It was also India's first women's boxing gold at the Asian Games since Mary Kom's triumph in 2014.

Parveen followed with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Chinese Taipei's Chen Nien-chin in the women's 65kg final. Chen, a Paris Olympic bronze medallist, pushed the Indian all the way, but Parveen held her nerve to secure her maiden Asian Games gold.

Ankush then completed the hat-trick in the men's 80kg category, defeating South Korea's Kim Minseong. His victory completed a remarkable sweep for India, with all three finalists converting their opportunities into gold. The three victories also ended a 12-year wait for an Indian boxing gold at the Asian Games.ARCHERY PRODUCES HISTORIC GOLD, TWO SILVERS India won the gold medal in women’s recurve team event in archery. Courtesy: Reuters

Archery added three more medals, including a landmark gold that had eluded India until October 2.

Kumkum Mohod, Ankita Bhakat and Kirti Sharma defeated South Korea 5-3 in the women's recurve team final to win India's first-ever Asian Games gold in the event. The trio had earlier beaten China 5-1 in the semi-final before holding their nerve against the formidable South Korean team.

Kumkum then added a silver alongside Dhiraj Bommadevara in the mixed recurve team event. The Indian pair lost 3-5 to China's Zhu Jingyi and Li Mengqi in the final, but the result gave India its first-ever Asian Games silver in the mixed recurve team event.

India's men's recurve team of Dhiraj Bommadevara, Neeraj Chauhan and Yashdeep Bhoge also finished with silver after losing 1-5 to South Korea in the final. The three medals continued India's strong showing in archery after the country's earlier dominance in the compound events.HOCKEY, WRESTLING GOLDS ADD DRAMATIC FINISHES India women's hockey team won an Asian Games gold after 44 years. Courtesy: Reuters

Two of India's biggest victories came in contrasting fashion.

The women's hockey team ended a 44-year wait for Asian Games gold, beating defending champions China 1-0 in a tense final. Lalremsiami scored the decisive goal in the 10th minute, but India's defence and goalkeeper Savita Punia had to withstand sustained Chinese pressure. Savita's penalty-stroke save proved particularly important as India protected its narrow lead until the final whistle.

The triumph gave India its second women's hockey gold at the Asian Games, after the 1982 title in New Delhi. It also secured direct qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

On the wrestling mat, Sujeet Kalkal produced an equally dramatic comeback to win the men's freestyle 65kg gold. After beating Afghanistan's Sayed Omar Zazai and Iran's Abbas Ebrahimzadehsavadkouhi, Sujeet stunned reigning Olympic champion Kotaro Kiyooka in the semi-final before facing Tajikistan's Abdulmazhid Kudiev in the final.

Sujeet appeared to be heading for defeat after falling 2-9 behind, but launched a stunning late comeback. He scored eight straight points, completing the turnaround with seconds remaining to win 10-9. It was India's first wrestling gold at the Asian Games since the 2018 edition.SAILING AND SEPAKTAKRAW ADD TO MEDAL COUNT

India also picked up two bronze medals in sports outside the traditional medal-heavy disciplines.

Nethra Kumanan won bronze in the women's dinghy sailing event, giving India another podium finish on the water. The medal was particularly significant for Nethra, who had finished seventh, fifth and fourth at her previous three Asian Games appearances before finally reaching the podium in Aichi-Nagoya.

In sepaktakraw, India's men's quadrant team secured bronze after losing 0-2 to Japan in the semi-final. India went down 12-15 and 13-15, but the semi-final appearance ensured a podium finish.

The bronze was another important milestone for Indian sepaktakraw, which has steadily expanded its presence at the Asian Games.WHERE INDIA FELL SHORT

For all the medals, October 2 also contained several near misses.

In wrestling, Dipanshi reached the bronze-medal bout in the women's 50kg category but could not convert the opportunity into a medal. She had earlier lost to Japan's Yui Susaki in the round of 16 before coming through the repechage.

Sailing provided another frustrating near miss as Vishnu Saravanan finished fourth in the men's dinghy, narrowly missing the podium. Track cycling also saw Harshveer Singh Sekhon and Vishavjeet Singh finish eighth in the men's Madison, while David Beckham ended his keirin semi-final in fifth.

There was mixed news in golf. Pranavi Urs remained firmly in medal contention after moving to 15-under following the third round, sitting in first place with a three-shot advantage. Aditi Ashok and Diksha Dagar were tied 18th. In the men's event, Veer Ahlawat was 10th, Saptak Talwar 11th and Yuvraj Sandhu tied 22nd. The golf events were therefore still capable of adding to India's medal tally.

India's canoe slalom campaign ended without a medal, with Shikha Chauhan, Pradhyumna Singh Rathod and Hitesh Kewat failing to progress far enough in the kayak cross events. Taekwondo's Kashish Malik also bowed out in the quarter-finals after beating Hong Kong's Lam Siu Wai in the round of 16.

Still, the misses were overshadowed by a day in which India collected 10 medals, including six golds, across a remarkable range of sports. With the Games nearing their conclusion, the day strengthened India's medal haul while producing several historic moments that will define the Aichi-Nagoya campaign.