New Delhi [India], September 9 (ANI): India finished fourth amongst 82 nations in the recently concluded Pickleball World Cup held at Da Nang, Vietnam, with a total medal tally of 41 medals, including seven golds, 17 silvers and 17 bronze medals.

The Pickleball World Cup 2026 proved to be a massive jump for India, which finished 7th in last year's World Cup, according to a release.

India sent a team delegation of 48 athletes who competed in the Kids, Juniors, Open, Seniors and Master's team events, representing the official Indian Team at the World Cup. 

"The Indian contingent has achieved tremendous results in the 2026 World Cup, and the entire Indian Pickleball Association would like to congratulate every single member of the delegation. Your hard work and dedication have made it seamless for IPA to continue our commitment towards global excellence. Ending up in 4th place is a huge statement to make, and I'm sure that we will definitely be aiming for an even higher spot next edition. Once again, congratulations to the entire Indian contingent, and we now set our eyes into improving grassroot pickleball within India to empower many more such talents to make a mark on the global stage,' Indian Pickleball Association CEO Aditya Khanna said.

The Juniors team ended up in 4th place after bowing out to the formidable Vietnam in the quarterfinals. The team was led by Arjun Singh and included Aditya Singh, Dev Shah, Purvansh Patel, Vivan Patel, Naomi Amalsadiwala, Ashritha Raju and Diya Mattipati, who put up a great fight for the bronze medal.

The Open team lost out to eventual finalists USA in the quarter-finals 2-4, ending their campaign on the penultimate day of the World Cup. The team was led by Harsh Mehta and included Arjun Singh, Anish Frolian, Aman Patel, Naomi Amalsadiwala, Pearl Amalsadiwala, Mihika Yadav and Aaliya Ebrahim. 

The Masters team consisted of Bhushan Akut, Thakurdas Rohira, and Ajeet Bhardwaj. The final contingent for Team India, the Seniors team, exited in the round of 16 against New Zealand; the squad consisted of Suryaveer Singh Bhullar, Atul Edward, Akhil Mathur, Nilesh Desai, Kiran Salian, Gaurika Chopra, Pearline Roopkumar and Kavita Khanna. 

The highlights of the individual categories were Harsh Mehta winning the bronze in the Open Pro Men's Doubles category, Purvansh Patel winning Gold in the U/18 Boys Singles category, and Bhushan Akut winning 3 golds in the 60+ men's doubles with Ashok Rohira, 60+ Men's Singles and 60+ mixed doubles respectively.

Fayrouz Zaidi took home top honours in the 40+ women's singles, as Vivek Reddy won on the men's side in the same category. (ANI)