Dsouza struggled to find the same accuracy she had shown earlier, while her Indonesian counterpart continued to put pressure on her
Share Article
https://www.india.com/sports/others/asian-games-2026-quimcy-dsouza-loses-teqball-semifinal-but-keeps-bronze-medal-hopes-alive-8527497/
File photo of Quimcy Dsouza(Credits: Instagram/Quimcy Dsouza)
Quimcy Dsouza’s run in the women’s singles Teqball event ended in the semifinals after the Indian lost to Indonesia’s Sumaya in a three-game contest earlier today.
The 24-year-old Mumbai player made an excellent start and looked in control after winning the opening game 12-7However, Sumaya fought back strongly and won the next two games 12-9 and 12-7 to book her place in the final.
Despite the defeat, Dsouza still has a chance to finish on the podiumShe will play the bronze-medal playoff, with Teqball making its Asian Games debut at the Aichi-Nagoya edition.
Dsouza’s strong beginning came from her ability to use the curved table and her heightShe troubled Sumaya with sliding serves and diagonal smashes, while her movement around the table allowed her to find open anglesThe Indian quickly built a lead and closed out the first game 12-7.
The second game was much closerSumaya increased the pace and forced Dsouza into longer ralliesThe Indian tried different ways to serve, using her knee when close to the table and her foot when positioned farther away.
Sumaya Tembus Semifinal Teqball Asian Games 2026, Indonesia Berpeluang Ukir Sejarah Medali
ATLET teqball putri Indonesia, Sumaya, menjaga asa Indonesia untuk mengukir sejarah di Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026Ia sukses melenggang ke semifinal nomor Women’s Single usai… pic.twitter.com/MhyqjqIhcP
— Media Indonesia (@mediaindonesia) September 18, 2026
At 3-3, Dsouza began finding success with diagonal smashes from the right sideA series of winners helped her reach 6-6, but Sumaya stayed in the contestThe Indonesian then produced two well-placed drop shots at 9-9 before Dsouza sent a smash wideThat gave Sumaya the game and levelled the match.
Dsouza again started the decider well, moving into a 3-0 lead with a mix of drop shots and powerful smashesShe remained ahead at 5-2, but the match changed after the change of ends.
Sumaya came back from 3-6 down and produced nine straight pointsDsouza struggled to find the same accuracy she had shown earlier, while the Indonesian continued to put pressure on her.
The defeat was difficult for Dsouza after such a strong start“Yes, she had an advantage because of her sepak takraw background, but it was a good game where the better player won,” Dsouza said while fighting through tears.
India’s Quimcy Joaquim Dsouza fought hard in the Women’s Singles semifinal against Indonesia’s Sumaya, going down 1–2 after a closely contested match in Teqball Women’s Singles – Semifinals – Match 1
Quimcy took the opening set 12–7 before Sumaya levelled the contest by… pic.twitter.com/4ShHrboKmp
— SAI Media (@Media_SAI) September 19, 2026
Who is Quimcy Dsouza and how she got transitioned from Football to Teqball
Quimcy Dsouza’s journey in Teqball has been unusualBefore taking up the sport, she played football at the state level and also competed in the 1,500mShe discovered Teqball around four years ago after seeing Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho playing the sport on Instagram.
Dsouza took to the sport quickly and continued to improve despite not having a coach or financial backingShe is now based in Bengaluru and works as a test engineer at Decathlon.
What is Teqball?
Teqball combines elements of football and table tennis and is played on a curved table with a standard size-5 footballPlayers can use their feet, knees, thighs, chest and head, but cannot use their hands or arms.
Each player has a maximum of three touches to return the ball over the net, while the same body part cannot be used twice in a rowWith one match still to play, Dsouza can still finish her Asian Games 2026 campaign with a medal.
