Jay Meena wins bronze: How a ball boy made Asian Games history for India

Dubai: Jay Meena’s journey from being a ball boy at school matches to making Asian Games history for India has reached a remarkable milestone.

The 26-year-old on Wednesday became the country’s first Asian Games medallist in soft tennis, securing a bronze at the Aichi-Nagoya Games.

Meena booked his place in the semifinals with a thrilling 4-3 quarter-final victory over the Philippines’ Sherwin Nuguit. After dropping the opening game 4-0, the Indian fought back and eventually held his nerve in the deciding game to win 7-5.

A semifinal place guaranteed Meena at least a bronze medal. He later faced Japan’s Takuya Kurosaka, losing 4-2 after another spirited performance. Meena rallied after losing the opening three games, winning the next two before Kurosaka closed out the match.

His medal is particularly symbolic in Japan, where soft tennis was invented in the 1880s.

The sport resembles traditional tennis but uses lightweight rubber balls and a different scoring system. Players compete for four points to win a game, while matches are generally played over seven or nine games.

For Meena, the achievement completes a remarkable rise. Growing up in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh, he initially dreamed of playing cricket. His introduction to soft tennis at school changed that path.

He started as a ball boy before progressing through district, state and national competitions and representing India internationally at 14.

Meena won gold at the 2022 National Games and became national singles champion in 2025. He also won India’s first World Soft Tennis Championships medal in 2024 and a singles bronze at the 2025 Asian Soft Tennis Championships.

Now, he has added another first to his growing list.