Bhaker, Sable and India’s men’s cricket team headline Asian Games schedule

India’s leading events on September 28 include Manu Bhaker’s return to shooting, Avinash Sable’s steeplechase comeback and the men’s cricket quarter-final against Afghanistan. India began the day 12th on the Asian Games medal table with 37 medals: four gold, 16 silver and 17 bronze. The country won seven medals on September 27, but none were gold.

Bhaker, Esha Singh and Rahi Sarnobat are scheduled to compete in the women’s 25-metre pistol rapid stage from 6:10am IST. The individual final is listed for 10:45am, subject to qualification. Bhaker is the defending Asian Games champion in the event after finishing fifth in the 10-metre air pistol final.

Sable’s 3,000-metre steeplechase final is scheduled for 4:17pm. He returns to the event after a serious knee injury and a long break from steeplechase racing. Murali Sreeshankar is due to compete in the men’s long-jump final at 4:30pm, while Parul Chaudhary contests the women’s 5,000-metre final after winning bronze in the 3,000-metre steeplechase.

India’s men begin their cricket campaign with a quarter-final against Afghanistan at 10am. They narrowly beat Japan by two runs in a rain-shortened five-over warm-up, winning 32-30 after being restricted to 32 for four. A win would send India into the semi-finals and keep its gold-medal bid alive; a defeat would end the campaign.

Lovlina Borgohain also begins her boxing campaign in the women’s 75kg quarter-finals. India has further fixtures in hockey, squash, tennis, volleyball, sepak takraw, archery, sailing, surfing and kurash, according to the schedule supplied by India Today.