Asian Games 2018: Ankita Raina Bags Bronze, Becomes Second Indian Woman After Sania Mirza to Win Medal in Women’s Singles Event

Asian Games 2018: Ankita Raina went down 4-6, 6-7 against China's Shuai Zhang in a gruelling last-four contest that lasted for almost two hours.

India’s number one tennis player Ankita Raina had to settle for bronze after going down fighting against China’s Shuai Zhang in their semi-final match at Asian Games 2018 in Indonesia.

Raina went down 4-6, 6-7 against the World No. 34 in a gruelling last-four contest that lasted for almost two hours.

.@ankita_champ, India’s No.1 player in Womens Singles, bags a at the #ASIANGAMES2018. Her confidence & strength on the court was commendable. ✌ #IndiaAtAsianGames @asiangames2018 pic.twitter.com/fJEk9ncaxA

— Rajyavardhan Rathore (@Ra_THORe) August 23, 2018

Raina was the better player in the initial exchanges as she broke Zhang in the second game of the match. However, the top-seeded Chinese player broke back immediately and then held her serve to draw level. Both players struggled on their serve as there were five breaks in the opening set, with Zhang getting three of those.

Follow here for Live Updates

The 25-year-old became only the second woman from the country after Sania Mirza to win a medal in the singles event at the Asian Games. Mirza, who notched up a silver in the 2006 edition in Doha, followed by a bronze by her in 2010, Guangzhou.

Congratulations Ankita Raina for the Bronze medal , our first in Tennis in #AsianGames2018⁠ ⁠ pic.twitter.com/CuvIyW3eVk

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) August 23, 2018

Meanwhile, the Indian duo of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan assured India of another silver medal after reaching the finals of the men’s doubles event.

The top-seeded Indian duo made a thrilling comeback against the Japanese duo of K. Uesugi and S. Shimabukuro and registered a 4-6, 6-3, 10-8 victory in the semi-final match that lasted for 72 minutes.