In a major shake-up ahead of the 2026 Asian Games, experienced archers Deepika Kumari and Atanu Das failed to secure places in India’s recurve squads after the Archery Association of India (AAI) announced a youthful and revamped lineup for the continental event in Japan.
The Asian Games will be held in Aichi Prefecture and Nagoya from September 19 to October 4, and the Indian contingent will feature several rising stars alongside a few established names.
Deepika and Atanu, despite being selected for the upcoming World Cup Stages 3 and 4, missed out on the Asian Games squad after finishing fourth in the final selection trials conducted by the federation.
🏹 Asian Games line-up confirmed!
The top three archers in each category have earned their place for the Asian Games after the 2nd Phase & Final Selection Trial at SAI NCOE, Sonipat. 🇮🇳🎯
Congratulations to all selected archers.#IndianArchery #TeamIndia #AsianGames #NTPC pic.twitter.com/e080aQ5DzM
— ARCHERY ASSOCIATION OF INDIA (@india_archery) May 18, 2026
The omission of Deepika comes as a surprise, considering the veteran recently guided India to a gold medal at the Archery World Cup Stage 2 in Shanghai.
Alongside Kumkum Anil Mohod and Ankita Bhakat, Deepika played a key role in India’s historic women’s recurve team triumph, including a stunning 5-1 win over powerhouse South Korea before defeating hosts China in the final.
Read More: Archery World Cup Stage 2: India stun China to win women’s recurve gold in Shanghai
In the men’s recurve section, Dhiraj Bommadevara will lead India’s challenge alongside young talents Neeraj Chauhan and Yashdeep Bhoge. Dhiraj, who won a team silver medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2022, will be competing in his second successive Asian Games.
Neeraj enters the tournament in impressive form after recently setting a new national record in the men’s recurve event with a score of 692/720 at the National Archery Championships, surpassing Olympian Tarundeep Rai’s long-standing mark. Bhoge, meanwhile, earned recognition after winning gold for India at the 2025 Asian Archery Championships.
India’s women’s recurve team will feature Ankita Bhakat, Kumkum Anil Mohod and Kirti Sharma. Ankita was also part of India’s bronze medal-winning team at the Hangzhou Asian Games and continues to remain one of the experienced names in the revamped setup.
There were also notable surprises in the compound squads. Former world champion Ojas Deotale and seasoned archer Abhishek Verma missed out despite their medal-winning performances at the previous Asian Games. Ojas, who won gold in Hangzhou, finished fifth in the selection trials and failed to make the cut.
The men’s compound team will instead feature Sahil Jadhav, Kushal Dalal and Thirumuru Ganesh Mani Ratnam.
India’s women’s compound challenge will once again revolve around world No. 3 Jyothi Surekha Vennam, who enjoyed a historic campaign at the 2023 Asian Games by winning gold medals in the individual, team and mixed team events. She will be joined by Chikitha Taniparthi and Prithika Pradeep.
India had produced a dominant performance in archery at the Hangzhou Asian Games, returning home with nine medals, including five gold, two silver and two bronze medals.
The selected athletes will also represent India at Archery World Cup Stages 3 and 4, scheduled to take place in Antalya, Türkiye, in June and Madrid, Spain, in July.
India’s Archery Squad for the 2026 Asian Games
Recurve Men: Dhiraj Bommadevara, Neeraj Chauhan, Yashdeep Bhoge
Recurve Women: Kirti Sharma, Kumkum Anil Mohod, Ankita Bhakat
Compound Men: Sahil Jadhav, Kushal Dalal, Thirumuru Ganesh Mani Ratnam
Compound Women: Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Chikitha Taniparthi, Prithika Pradeep