India finish second in group after narrow loss to China
India’s men’s badminton team finished second in Group A after losing 3-2 to defending champions China in the Thomas & Uber Cup 2026. Ayush Shetty and HS Prannoy won their matches, but India fell short in the crucial doubles contests
Hyderabad: The Indian men’s team finished second in Group A after their spirited effort was not enough to beat defending champions China in their last round-robin clash of the Thomas & Uber Cup 2026 in Horsens, Denmark, on Wednesday.
Having beaten Canada and Australia in their earlier group clashes, both India and China had already secured quarterfinal berths, and the face-off on Wednesday was to determine the group winners, which China ultimately won 3-2.
Lakshya Sen and the men’s doubles combination of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty had their chances but faltered in the decider.
Sen went down 19-21, 21-8, 12-21 against former All England champion Li Shi Feng, while Satwik-Chirag saved five match points before losing 13-21, 21-13, 24-26 against Liang Wei Kang and Wang Chang.
Asian Championships silver medallist Ayush Shetty then put India on the scoresheet when he fought back from a game down to beat world No. 15 Weng Hong Yang 17-21, 21-13, 21-15.
However, the second men’s doubles pairing of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun could not build on the momentum and lost 17-21, 13-21 against He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu to end India’s chances of topping the group.
HS Prannoy then ended the day on a winning note for India by beating Lu Guang Zu 20-22, 21-19, 21-11 as the team awaited the quarterfinal draw.
The result: Men: India lost to China 2-3 (Lakshya Sen lost to Li Shi Feng 19-21, 21-8, 12-21; Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty lost to Liang Wei Kang/Wang Chang 13-21, 21-13, 24-26; Ayush Shetty beat Weng Hong Yang 17-21, 21-13, 21-15; Hariharan Amsakarunan/MR Arjun lost to He Ji Ting/Ren Xiang Yu 17-21, 13-21; HS Prannoy beat Lu Guang Zu 20-22, 21-19, 21-11).
