India bowed out of the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2025 after a 3-0 defeat to Japan in the quarter-finals at the Conson Gymnasium in Qingdao, the People’s Republic of China, on Friday.
The mixed doubles pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto, along with women’s singles player Malvika Bansod, fought hard against higher-ranked opponents but could not prevent India’s exit.
Japan, the 2017 champions, fielded a second-string squad but still proved too strong for India.
In the opening match, world No. 12 duo Hiroki Midorikawa and Natsu Saito overcame Dhruv and Tanisha, ranked 37th, in a tight three-game battle. The Indian pair staged a comeback in the second game but eventually fell 21-13, 17-21, 21-13 after 61 minutes.
Malvika then faced world No. 8 Tomoka Miyazaki in women’s singles. The young Indian, ranked 31st, put up a strong fight in the second game but lost 21-12, 21-19.
With India trailing 2-0, the 32-year-old HS Prannoy, world No. 31, needed to keep the tie alive in men’s singles. The Indian badminton player fought back after losing the first game but struggled in the decider. Kenta Nishimoto, 16th in the badminton rankings, closed out the match 21-15, 15-21, 21-12 in 77 minutes, sealing Japan’s place in the semi-finals.
India had reached the last eight as Group D runners-up behind South Korea. Macau China, who lost 5-0 to both India and South Korea, were eliminated in the group stage.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu missed the tournament due to injury. India had won a bronze medal in the previous edition in 2023 in Dubai.
The Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2025 will conclude on Sunday.
