India's Rio fortunes fluctuated on day six: Archers Deepika Kumari and Bombayla Devi were knocked out of the competition. The men's hockey team qualified for the last eight despite going down to Netherlands. Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna capped the evening by winning their mixed doubles match.
Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa play their second match of the competition on Friday. After the defeat in their opening encounter, another loss will throw them out of the reckoning for the knockout phase.
Elsewhere, Indian track and field athletes will be in action for the first time. All eyes though, are on archer Atanu Das, who will be facing South Korean Lee Seung-yun in the quarter-final.
Golf – Round 2: 4 pm IST
India's golfers endured a sluggish start in round one. Anirban Lahiri was in a tie for the 50th spot, and SSP Chowrasia, for the 27th. They will have to do much better than their scores of 74 and 71, respectively, if they are to be in contention for medals.
Badminton doubles – Women: 5.30 pm IST; Men: 7.50 pm IST
Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa were expected to go far, but their fate stands on a knife's edge after going down in straight sets in their first encounter. History favours the Indians here – they defeated their opponents, the Dutch pair of Eefje Muskens and Selena Piek, in the 2015 Canada Open final.
In the men's doubles Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy also face a must-win encounter in their second match, having lost the first. Their opponents are the Chinese duo, Chai Biao and Hong Wei, who also lost their own first tie.
Men’s Individual Archery – Round of 16: 5.43 pm IST, Quarter-final: 11.30 pm IST
Atanu Das has his task cut out against Korean Lee Seung-Yun, who already has a gold medal from the team event. The Koreans bulldozed their way to the top, and there is very little margin for error.
Nothing short of 10s and a few 9s will fetch victory – 7s or 8s will dent Das's chances majorly. He just about managed to scrape through to the Round of 16, defeating Cuban Adrian Puentes 6-4. Lee starts out as the overwhelming favourite here. If Das progresses, he will face either 16-year-old Chilean Ricardo Soto or Dutchman Sjef van den Berg in the quarters later in the day.
Men's Shooting 50m Rifle Prone – Qualification: 5.30 pm IST, Finals: 7.30 pm IST
Gagan Narang and Chain Singh will be competing in the qualification rounds of the 50m Rifle prone qualification. Both shooters have been in winning mode over the years. There's hope in the Indian camp that they will qualify for the finals, which come up later in the day.
Finishing with a bronze medal in London 2012, Narang is yet again a strong contender, but it is the in-form Chain Singh who has stolen a march over his senior compatriot in recent times.
Skeet Shooting – Qualification: 6 pm IST
During the build-up to the Olympics, Mairaj Ahmed Khan came tantalisingly close to winning a gold medal in the Skeet World Cup, only to lose out in a shoot off. Khan is the first Indian to qualify for the skeet event. There will be two days of qualification before the semi-finals are played.
Women's shotput – Qualification: 6.35 pm IST
Manpreet Kaur shattered an 18-year world record to win the National Open Athletics a year ago. International shotput throwers cross the 20 m mark with ease. That will be Kaur's hurdle in the event. Her chances for progressing are slim at the moment.
Men's 800 m – Round 1, Heat 3: 6.56 pm IST
The chances of Johnson's finishing on the podium are low, but the Kerala athlete is the first Indian since 1980 to go past the qualifying mark in 800m. Johnson will be racing alongside the defending gold medallist, Kenya's David Rushida.
Men's Discus Qualification – Vikas Gowda: 7.25 pm IST
Rio might be Gowda's last Olympic Games. The 33-year-old is slightly out of match practice, and will need to do very well to improve on his London 2012 standing, which was 8th. The final round of the event will be played tomorrow.
Men's 20 km Walk: 11 pm IST
Gurmeet Singh, Manish Singh Rawat and Ganapathi Krishnan are in the fray. Singh created history in recent times when he became the first Indian to clinch a gold medal in the Asian 20 km Race Walk Championships. Colombia's Miguel Angel Lopez, alongside the Chinese contingent of Wang Zhen, Cai Zelin and defending champion Chen Ding, are pencilled in as the favourites.
Men's 400 m Round 1, Heat 7: 5.43 pm IST
No one is expecting Mohammad Anas to bring home a medal. The 18-year-old is only the third Indian to qualify for the event, and shattered a national record at the Polish Athletics Championships recently.
Men's Hockey – Group Match: 9 pm IST
India have entered the quarter-final despite going down to the mighty Netherlands yesterday. Canada have been the whipping boys of Group B, and India look poised to grab a win.
That should leave them in third place in the group. A big win is on the cards for PR Sreejeshs men, who have played with plenty of heart and tenacity so far.
Tennis Mixed Doubles – Quarterfinals: 11.30 pm IST
Despite facing a giant from the singles game in the form of Andy Murray, it is the Indian duo of Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna who are the favourites in this contest. The Great Britain pair of Heather Watson and Murray were drafted in at the 11th hour, though they took to doubles tennis with ease, defeating David Ferrer and Carla Suarez Navarro in straight sets.
Should Mirza and Bopanna win, they will face the winner of the quarter-final clash between USA and Italy in the semi-final on Saturday. This event is one of India’s best hopes of winning a medal. The road just got a tad easier with Rafael Nadal pulling out.
Men's Boxing – Round of 16: 3.30 am IST (August 13)
Vikas Krishan's win in the round of 32 in the 75 kg category has brought some hope. There was a bit of controversy about the bout as USA boxer Charles Conwell alleged that the judges had favoured the Indian in the contest.
Krishnan faces Turkey's Onder Sipal, who did just about enough to win his Round of 32 match, in his passage to the quarter-final. The Indian has a slender edge, but has to be little more watchful – his form tapered off in the final round against Conwell.
