It’s a packed day ahead for the Indian contingent at the Rhine-Ruhr 2025 World University Games, as athletes step into action from early afternoon and compete well past midnight.
With archery, swimming, athletics, tennis, table tennis, badminton, volleyball, taekwondo, basketball and fencing on the schedule, July 22 promises to be one of the most eventful days for Indian university sport this summer.
The day opens at 12:30PM IST, when India’s archers take the field for ranking rounds. The men’s recurve team of Mrinal Chauhan, Vishnu Choudhary and Aryan Rana will aim to shoot consistently to earn favourable draws in the knockouts, while the women’s compound team featuring Madura D, Avneet Kaur and Parneet Kaur lines up at the same time. Over in the swimming pool, Nithik Nathella will look to set the tone in the men’s 200m backstroke heat.
A little later at 12:50PM, sprinters Latiesha Mandanna and Nina Venkatesh compete in the women’s 50m freestyle heats, hoping to grab semifinal spots in this lightning-quick event. At 1:00PM, the women’s sabre fencing team faces Spain in the Round of 16, an early test of nerves on the piste.
Srihari Back In Action
The next half hour is intense. Between 1:05PM and 1:26PM, swimmers Srihari Nataraj and Jashua Thomas compete in the men’s 50m freestyle heat, while taekwondo athletes Shivam Shetty (63kg) and Rohit Shokeen (87kg) face opponents from Thailand and Spain respectively in their opening bouts. On the sand, the beach volleyball pair of Chetan and Abithan takes on Poland in Pool F. Meanwhile, in the women’s 200m butterfly heats, Nilabjaa Ghosh and Nina Venkatesh will aim to keep India’s swimming hopes afloat.
By 1:30PM, tennis takes over with Vaishnavi Adkar facing Germany’s Sina Hermann in the women’s singles Round of 16, a crucial clash for a quarterfinal spot. Kabir Hans and Maan Kesharwani also feature in the men’s singles consolation rounds. Badminton sees mixed doubles action as Abinash and Varshini meet Australia’s Jordan and Kaitlyn, and Viraj with Aalisha face Sri Lanka’s Tenuk and Jananuwani.
In the pool, Dibyanka Pradhan and Naga Greeshmini swim the women’s 100m breaststroke heats, and the men’s 4x200m freestyle team races in heat 3. The men’s foil fencing team battles France in the Round of 16, while in taekwondo, Shivangi Chanambam (53kg) and Etisha Das (73kg) face Turkish and German opponents respectively. The table tennis men’s doubles Round of 32 also begins, with Ayaz and Devarsh facing France’s Picard and Rembert.
From 3:00PM onwards, India’s presence spreads further. In beach volleyball, Kanimozhi and Gowshika play Poland in the women’s Pool C match. Table tennis sees four Indian women in singles Round of 64 matches: Pritha Vartikar, Sayali Wani, Taneesha Kotecha and Suhana Saini, against opponents from Turkey, China, Japan and the Netherlands. The tennis mixed doubles Round of 16 features Vaishnavi Adkar and Atharva against USA’s Center and Barton, while in badminton mixed doubles, Sathish and Vaishnavi face Turkey’s Butkus and Zimnol. Depending on the morning results, the recurve men’s team might also play a 1/12 elimination round in archery.
As the evening begins around 6:30PM, archery continues with the compound men’s ranking round featuring Kushal Dalal, Sahil Jadhav and Hritik Sharma, and the recurve women’s ranking round with Bhajan Kaur, Aditi Jaiswal and Basanti Mahato. In table tennis, Harkunwar Singh plays Taiwan’s Feng Yi-Hsin in the men’s singles Round of 64, and Taneesha with Sayali face Portugal’s Matos and Santos in the women’s doubles Round of 32. Badminton’s men’s singles Round of 128 sees A R Rohan Kumar up against Australia’s Asher Jing Jie.
On the athletics track, Deekshitha Gowda and S K Shreevarthani run in the women’s 400m hurdles heats, and Ruchit Mori takes the lanes in the men’s 400m hurdles semifinal after clocking a personal best to qualify yesterday. The Indian women’s basketball team faces Germany in a classification match for places 9–16, and the volleyball team plays Australia to decide 15th–16th place. Badminton continues with women’s doubles Round of 64, where Devika and Aditi meet Nepal’s Ayushma and Nisham Hangma.
The final stretch of the day, from 8:50PM onwards, will test stamina and nerves. Bharathraj Bijuraj contests the men’s high jump qualification, while Arjun Waskale lines up in the men’s 1500m heat, and Gurdev Singh competes in men’s hammer throw. Table tennis sees Viraj and Abinash play Japan’s Matsumoto and Miyashita in men’s doubles Round of 64, and in archery, the recurve women’s team could have an elimination match depending on earlier rankings.
Can Ancy Win a Medal
Late-night athletics is highlighted by medal hopes: Ancy Sojan competes in the women’s long jump final, while Abinaya Rajarajan races in the women’s 100m semifinal and Abimanyu in the men’s discus throw final. Amandeep Kaur and K. M. Chanda run the women’s 800m heats. Indian swimmers could also feature in multiple semifinals and finals men’s 200m backstroke, women’s 100m breaststroke, men’s 50m freestyle, women’s 200m butterfly, women’s 50m freestyle and the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay all depending on earlier heat performances.
A Day that Defines Depth
July 22 is more than just a list of events; it shows the remarkable depth and reach of Indian university sport across water, sand, track, court, and field. From the archery range in the afternoon to athletics finals past midnight, it’s a day where seasoned names and rising stars alike carry the nation’s hopes. Indian fans, brace yourselves for a long but thrilling day, and keep an eye out for stories of grit, surprise, and perhaps, podium finishes at the World University Games 2025.
