NAGOYA, 27 September 2026 — The Centre Court stands were full for the very first match of Asian Games tennis on Sunday. Fans had come early to the Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, and the players began under a cloudy sky that would eventually change the day’s plans.
Japan’s Himeno Sakatsume gave the home crowd a winning start, beating the Philippines’ Tennielle Madis 6–1 6–0. No. 4 seed Wang Xiyu of China followed her onto Centre Court and defeated Indonesia’s Anjali Junarto 6–0 6–0. Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima also advanced, beating Nepal’s Swastika Bista 6–1 6–1.
Alexandra Eala’s arrival drew plenty of attention, even though she was not playing a match on Sunday. Fans gathered around the Philippine star, eager to see one of the most anticipated players in the tennis competition. When rain interrupted outdoor play, Eala continued her preparations on an indoor practice court.
Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva made a quick start to her campaign with a 6–1 6–0 win over Pakistan’s Ushna Suhail. Her compatriot Sonja Zhiyenbayeva beat Adithya Karunaratne of Hong Kong, China 6–1 7–5. Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej, Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland and Yang Ya-yi, and Korea Republic’s Ku Yeonwoo and Back Dayeon were also among the women’s singles winners.
The rain stopped play outside during the afternoon. After a wait, matches resumed on the indoor courts. Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew beat Mongolia’s Maralgoo Chogsomjav 6–4 6–2 in one of those later matches.
Jordan’s Zaid Al-Mashni won the day’s only completed men’s singles match, defeating Pakistan’s Muzammil Murtaza 6–3 6–2. In men’s doubles, Nepal’s Abhishek Bastola and Pradip Khadka won one of Sunday’s closest contests, edging Mongolia’s Badrakh Munkhbaatar and Zolbadar Urnukh 6–2 4–6 (14–12). Uzbekistan’s Sergey Fomin and Khumoyun Sultanov also came through a match tiebreak, beating Chinese Taipei’s Huang Tsung-hao and Wu Tung-lin 4–6 6–3 (10–3).
There were wins for the hosts in doubles too. Jay Friend and Kokoro Isomura advanced in the men’s event, while Shuko Aoyama and Yusuke Kusuhara won their mixed doubles opener. The Philippines’ Shaira Rivera and Francis Alcantara finished their mixed doubles match with a 6–4 1–6 (10–8) win over Iran’s Meshkatolzahra Safi and Kasra Rahmani.
Twenty-nine matches were completed on Day 1. It began with a full Centre Court and ended indoors, with plenty more tennis still to come in Nagoya.
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