Who is Jay Meena? The man who won India’s first Asian Games soft tennis medal
Jay Meena bagged bronze in soft tennis at the Asian Games. | Photo Credit: SAI
Jay Meena bagged bronze in soft tennis at the Asian Games. | Photo Credit: SAI
Jay Meena has gone from discovering soft tennis almost by accident on a school court in Dewas to creating history for India at the Asian Games.
The 24-year-old from Madhya Pradesh has won bronze in the men’s singles soft tennis event at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, giving India its first-ever Asian Games medal in soft tennis.
Meena was initially interested in cricket and dreamed of becoming a cricketer. His introduction to soft tennis came at Pioneer Public School in Dewas, where he first watched players on the court and helped as a ball boy. He eventually picked up a racket himself and progressed through school, district, state and national competitions. By the age of 14, he was competing internationally in Japan, the home of soft tennis.
He announced himself on the domestic stage by winning men’s singles gold at the 2022 National Games in Gujarat. He also contributed to Madhya Pradesh’s medal-winning performances in the men’s team and doubles events before becoming the national champion in men’s singles in 2025.
Meena had already made history internationally before his Asian Games breakthrough. At the 2024 World Soft Tennis Championships, he and Aadhya Tiwari won bronze in mixed doubles, securing India’s first-ever medal at the World Soft Tennis Championships.
He followed that with another landmark performance at the 2025 Asian Soft Tennis Championships, becoming the first Indian to win a medal at the continental championships. He won bronze in men’s singles and finished the tournament with four medals across men’s singles, mixed doubles, men’s team and mixed team events.
The bronze at Aichi-Nagoya now adds the biggest achievement of his career and places Meena in the history of Indian sport as the country’s first Asian Games soft tennis medallist.
Published on Sep 23, 2026
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