India will start their singles campaign in badminton at the Asian Games on Friday, September 25. Indian star shuttlers have been handed a tough draw that was announced on Thursday.
Lakshya Sen gets a lucky bye in the first round, only to face former world champion Loh Kean Yew, who also received a bye, in the second round. If Sen manages to get past Loh, he will then face the current world number-1 Jonathan Christie.
Ayush Shetty also received a first-round bye but will face his first real test in Round 3 against Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei.
Defending champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have a comparatively kinder path to the semifinals.
India have already picked up medals in back-to-back badminton team events at the Asian Games, after the men's side added a bronze here to the silver it won in Hangzhou. They went down 1-3 to China in Wednesday's semifinal, with the singles losses by Lakshya Sen and Ayush Shetty proving costly.
The women's side also exited in the quarterfinals, with Sindhu and Unnati Hooda losing to Japanese opponents and returning empty-handed. The leading singles players must now shake off that setback and refocus on an individual medal at the 20th edition of the Games.
Lakshya And Sindhu
Lakshya will need to bounce back quickly. The world No. 14 arrived after a run of first-round exits, but showed plenty of resolve to beat double world championships silver medallist Kodai Naroka in India's quarterfinal tie against Japan.
Ayush, who stunned Shi Yu Qi at the New Delhi World Championships, also skips the opening round but may run into Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen in round three if he advances.
Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu, like Lakshya, begins in round two after a bye. She could meet Japan's seventh seed Tomoka Miyazaki in the round of 16 and then Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Yufei of China in the quarterfinals if she keeps winning.
Young Unnati Hooda opens against North Korea's Yu Mi Song and could face world No. 6 Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in the third round.
Doubles And Mixed
The men's doubles draw is kinder on paper for India, with defending champions Satwik and Chirag, the fourth seeds, opening against Thailand's Peeratchai Sukpun and Pakkapon Teeraratsakul.
A second-round clash with Indonesia's Leo Rolly Carnando and Daniel Marthin could await. If they keep moving, South Korea's top seeds Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae may be waiting in the semifinals.
India's women's doubles hopes will also be watched closely. Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, who won their maiden world championships bronze in New Delhi last month and were the only winners in the team clash against Japan, begin against Hong Kong's Lok Lok Lui and Hiu Yan Tsang.
Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi have drawn Indonesia's Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilyysa Trias Puspitasari in round one. They could next meet South Korea's second seeds Hana Baek and Sohee Lee.
In mixed doubles, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto start against Maldives' Nibal Ahmed and Abdul Razzaq Aminath Nabeeha.
India have already secured a badminton medal at these Games after the men's team collected bronze in the 1-3 semifinal defeat to China. The Indian squad had a historic run at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, where it won three medals.
India's badminton squad for Asian Games 2026
Men Singles
Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty
Women's Singles
P.V. Sindhu & Unnati Hooda
Men's Doubles
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty
M.R. Arjun & Hariharan Amsakarunan
Mixed Doubles
Dhruv Kapila & Tanisha Crasto
Women's Doubles
Treesa Jolly & Gayatri Gopichand
Kavipriya Selvam & Simran Singhi
Badminton Singles Schedule
September 25
6 a.m. onwards
Men’s Singles Round of 64 (Ayush Shetty)
Women’s Singles Round of 64 (P. V. Sindhu, Unnati Hooda)
Mixed Doubles Round of 32 (Dhruv Kapila & Tanisha Crasto)
12:30 p.m. onwards
Men’s Doubles Round of 32 (Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty, M.R. Arjun and Hariharan Amsakarunan)
Women’s Doubles Round of 32 (Treesa Jolly & Gayatri Gopichand, Kavipriya Selvam & Simran Singhi)
Mixed Doubles Round of 16
September 26
6 a.m. onwards
Men’s & Women’s Singles Round of 32
12:30 p.m. onwards
Men’s & Women’s Singles Round of 16
Men’s Doubles Round of 16
Women’s Doubles Round of 16
September 27
6 a.m. onwards
Women’s Doubles Quarterfinals
Mixed Doubles Quarterfinals
9:30 a.m. onwards
Men’s & Women’s Singles Quarterfinals
Men’s Doubles Quarterfinals
September 28
6 a.m. onwards
Women’s Doubles Semifinals
Mixed Doubles Semifinals
9:30 a.m. onwards
Men’s & Women’s Singles Semifinals
Men’s Doubles Semifinals
September 29
7:30 a.m. onwards
Men’s & Women’s Singles Final
Men’s Doubles Final
Women’s Doubles Final
Mixed Doubles Final
