Ankita-Rutuja Fall, Nagal Left in Limbo After Rain Delay at Asian Games

India's women's doubles campaign ended in the first round after Ankita Raina and Rutuja Bhosale were beaten by Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva and Anna Danilina in a deciding match tie-break, while rain forced Sumit Nagal's men's singles clash to be postponed.

Ankita and Rutuja went down 7-5, 3-6, 5-10 in a contest that lasted three sets before the Kazakh pair held their nerve in the deciding tie-break in Nagoya on Monday.

Ankita-Rutuja fall after three-set battle

The Indian pair made a strong start and edged the opening set 7-5, putting themselves in a position to advance to the second round.

Putintseva and Danilina responded in the second set, however, winning it 6-3 to force a deciding match tie-break.

The Kazakh duo then held their nerve when it mattered most, winning the decider 10-5 to bring India's women's doubles campaign to an early end.

The defeat means India will not have a representative in the women's doubles draw beyond the opening round.

Rain halts Nagal's men's singles campaign

Sumit Nagal's men's singles campaign was also interrupted, although the Indian remains alive in the competition.

Nagal was facing South Korea's Hong Seongchan and had taken a 3-2 lead in the opening set when rain forced play to be suspended.

The match will now resume on Tuesday, with Nagal needing to continue his challenge when play resumes.

The postponement comes after Nagal's recent encounters with South Korean opposition at the Davis Cup, where he lost both of his singles matches during India's tie in Seoul.

For now, the weather has ensured that his Asian Games contest remains unresolved.