NAGOYA, 27 September 2026 : Rain once again had a major say in the tennis programme at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games on Monday. Play began under cloudy skies at the Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, but repeated showers made it difficult to continue on the outdoor courts.
Several matches started before the rain returned. On Centre Court, Japan’s Hayato Matsuoka and Hong Kong, China’s Kairan Thompson were locked at 5-5 in the opening set when play was stopped.
India’s Sumit Nagal also made a positive start against Korea Republic’s Hong Seongchan. Nagal was leading 3-2 in the first set when the rain forced another interruption. The match was later postponed and will continue on Tuesday.
Indonesia’s M Rifqi Fitriadi and Pakistan’s Muhammad Shoaib had reached 3-3 in their opening set before their match was also suspended. Several other matches could not begin and were moved to the following day, leaving Tuesday with a much busier schedule.
One of the best matches of the day came in the opening round of the women’s doubles, where Kazakhstan’s Anna Danilina and Yuliya Putintseva faced India’s Ankita Raina and Rutuja Bhosale.
The Indian pair made the stronger start and took a closely fought opening set 7-5. Danilina and Putintseva responded well, winning the second set 6-3 before carrying that momentum into the match tie-break. The Kazakh pair completed the comeback with a 10-5 victory to advance to the next round.
The indoor courts allowed several other matches to be completed. China’s Zhang Shuai defeated Iran’s Meshkatolzahra Safi 6-1 6-0 in the women’s singles, while Wu Yibing recorded a 6-1 6-1 win against Iran’s Ali Yazdani in the men’s singles.
The day ended with one of the tournament’s most eagerly awaited players taking the court. Top seed Alexandra Eala began her women’s singles campaign against Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej.
The match was originally scheduled for Centre Court, where supporters had waited patiently through the uncertain weather to watch the Filipina star. However, the continued rain meant that it had to be moved indoors.
Eala quickly settled into the new surroundings and produced a confident performance, winning 6-1 6-0 in 55 minutes to secure her place in the quarterfinals.
A Centre Court appearance in front of the waiting crowd would have provided a fitting end to a difficult day. Eala still made time for her supporters after the match, meeting fans and posing for photographs and selfies before leaving the venue.
It was a frustrating day for players, officials and spectators, with the rain repeatedly stopping the outdoor programme. Tennis continued wherever possible on the indoor courts, but several unfinished and postponed matches will now carry over to Tuesday.
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