India’s swimming and para-swimming contingent delivered key early momentum on Day 2 of the Commonwealth Games 2026 in Glasgow, with Srihari Nataraj advancing to the men’s 50m backstroke semi-finals and CWG debutants Karthik Budigina and Ali Imam qualifying for the men’s S13 100m freestyle final.
However, the day also brought a major setback for India’s judo plans, as Birmingham 2022 silver medallist Tulika Maan was withdrawn from the Games after being handed a provisional suspension by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for three whereabouts failures in the last 12 months, according to a PTI report.
With medal events lined up later in the day across para powerlifting and artistic gymnastics, India’s Day 2 carried both immediate qualification successes in the pool and significant off-field disruption in judo.
Swimming and para-swimming: India books semis and a final
Srihari Nataraj moved into the semi-finals of the men’s 50m backstroke after finishing fifth in his heats. He clocked 25.52 seconds to secure progression, with his semi-final scheduled for around 12:30 AM IST on Saturday (July 25).
In para-swimming, India’s Karthik Budigina and Ali Imam, both making their Commonwealth Games debut, qualified for the final of the men’s 100m freestyle S13 event. Budigina finished third in the heats with a time of 57.10 seconds. Imam secured the last qualifying spot with a time of 1:05.32.
The report noted that the S13 category is for athletes who are visually impaired, and also stated that Imam competes in the S12 category. The men’s S13 100m freestyle final is set to be held around midnight (12:00 AM IST).
These results gave India immediate representation in a medal race (the S13 final) and kept a key prospect alive in the sprint backstroke, with Nataraj set for his next swim in the early hours.
India’s Day 2 schedule highlights mentioned in the update
Alongside the pool events, the Day 2 schedule listed multiple medal opportunities and key appearances across sports. In artistic gymnastics, Tapeshwarnath Das, Swathish KP, Tapan Mohanty, and Yogeshwar Singh were named for the men’s team final and individual qualification, with a men’s team final medal event also listed for later in the night.
In para powerlifting, medal events were listed across men’s and women’s categories, including the men’s lightweight final featuring Ashok Kumar Malik and Parmjeet Kumar, the women’s lightweight final featuring Jaspreet Kaur and Suman Devi, the women’s heavyweight final featuring Kasthuri Rajamani, and the men’s heavyweight final featuring Jhandu Kumar and Sudhir.
The schedule also included lawn bowls fixtures for Rupa Rani Tirkey and Pinki in the women’s pairs sectional (Round 2) against Thabelo Muvhango and Jacqui van Rensburg of South Africa, and Putul Sonowal in the men’s singles sectional (Round 2) against Cecil Alexander of the Falkland Islands. In boxing, Jadumani Singh was listed for a men’s 55kg round of 32 bout against Aaron Cullen of Scotland.
Judo setback: Tulika Maan withdrawn after provisional suspension
India’s judo campaign took a hit with the withdrawal of Tulika Maan from the ongoing Glasgow edition. The update reported that Maan was handed a provisional suspension by NADA for three whereabouts failures in the last 12 months, leading to her being withdrawn from the team.
Maan had won silver in the 78kg category at the 2022 edition and was described as a strong medal prospect for Glasgow as well. The report also stated that another Indian judoka, Arun Kumar (-73kg), was withdrawn on Thursday for failing an out-of-competition dope test.
According to the update, the Indian judo team had not yet left for the Games at the time of reporting, with judo competition scheduled to begin on July 31 and the judokas scheduled to depart on July 27.
