BWF India Open 2026 Highlights Day 3: Sen Last Indian In Quarterfinals As Satwik-Chirag, Prannoy Exit

Good Morning folks. This is the start of the India Open 2026 day 3 live blog. Stay tuned for the real-time coverage from the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

There are a total of 7 matches lined-up for the Indian contingent on day 3 of the BWF India Open Super 750.

Kidambi Srikanth Vs France's Christo Popov, Court 1 (11:40AM)

HS Prannoy Vs Singapore's Loh Kean, Court 1 (2:10PM)

Lakshya Sen Vs Japan's Kenta Nishimoto, Court 1 (3:00PM)

Only 1 Women's Singles match to be played.

Malvika Bansod Vs Vietnam's Han Yue, Court 1 (12:30PM)

Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand Vs Vietnam's LI Yi/Luo, Court 1 (3:50PM)

Satwik/Chirag Vs Japan's Hiroki/Kyohei, Court 1 (4:40PM)

Hariharan/Arjun Vs Vietnam's Liang/Wang, Court 1 (5:30PM)

Day 2 saw a number of high profile Indian exits at the India Open Super 750. PV Sindhu bowed out after losing 2 games straight against Vietnamese opponent Nguyen Thuy Linh.

17-year-old Tanvi Sharma had put up a valiant fight but ultimately lost to World No.2 Wang Zhi Yi of China (20-22, 21-18, 21-13).

Tharun Mannepalli exited after losing in an all-Indian battle against veteran Kidambi Srikanth (21-15, 6-21, 19-21).

Rutuparna Panda & Swetaparna Panda lost to Japan’s Nanako Hara and Riko Kiyose (21-8, 21-18) in Women's doubles.

Gayatri Rawat & Mansa Rawat lost to South Korea’s top-seeded pair Ha Na Baek and So Hee Lee (21-5, 21-8) in Women's doubles.

The promising pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto fell to Thailand’s Pakkapon Teeraratsakul and Sapsiree Taerattanachai (21-15, 21-14) in Mixed doubles.

Rohan Kapoor & Ruthvika Shivani Gadde lost to Germany's Marvin Seidel and Thuc Phuong Nguyen (21-19, 21-14) in Mixed doubles

Ashith Surya & Amrutha Pramuthesh exited after a straight-sets loss to Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara (21-15, 21-7) in Mixed doubles.

The entire BWF India Open Super 750 can be live streamed on the Eurosports channels.

Kidambi Srikanth, climbing into the second round after a gritty comeback win yesterday, now takes on France’s Christo Popov, the BWF World Tour Finals winner and current world No.7, in minutes; Srikanth has historically edged Popov in past meetings but will need to match his precision and patience against the French left-hander’s attacking angles right from the first rally.

Srikanth Kidambi has gone down against France's Christo Popov in game 1, losing by 21-14. The 2nd game is currently underway and Kidambi is leading by 12-9.

Srikanth Kidambi produced a terrific turnaround to win the 2nd game by 21-17. However, the Indian veteran is currently trailing by 13-9 against Christo Popov.

Despite putting up a strong fight, Indian veteran Srikanth Kidambi goes down fighting and loses the 3rd game by 21-17.

Indian youngster Malvika Bansod is face-to-face with Vietnam's Han Yue in Court 1. She lost the first game by 21-18 but is currently leading the 2nd by 11-9.

Malvika Bansod has been eliminated from the India Open Super 750 round of 16 stage as she lost in straight games by 21-18 and 21-15.

HS Prannoy is up next for India in a battle against Singapore's Loh Kean from 2:25PM onwards in Court 1.

HS Prannoy Vs Loh Kean in the men's round of 16 clash will start shortly.

HS Prannoy digs in early and comes out on top in a tight first game, edging Loh Kean Yew 21–18. A strong, gritty start from the Indian veteran, now the question is whether he can keep the momentum and close it out in straight games.

Prannoy drops the second game despite a late fightback. He saves three game points and threatens a turnaround, but Loh Kean Yew holds his nerve to take it 21–19, pushing the Indian into a decider.

Can Prannoy fight back? It’s looking increasingly difficult for the Indian, who trails 9–14 at the change of ends. The momentum has swung sharply towards Loh Kean Yew, but this is familiar territory for Prannoy, he’s overturned deficits like this before.

HS Prannoy bows out, and it’s a third straight second-round setback for India. The Indian veteran started brightly, pocketing the opening game, but couldn’t sustain the momentum as Loh Kean Yew lifted his level. Once the Singaporean found his rhythm, Prannoy struggled to keep pace, going down 21–18, 19–21, 14–21.

The other Indian in contention is Lakshya Sen, and it’s a shaky opening for him against Kenta Nishimoto. He falls behind 1–3, briefly evens it out at 3–3, but Nishimoto soon seizes control to open up an 11–7 lead at the mid-game interval.

Lakshya Sen is right back in the fight. From a tough position, he claws his way to 19–18, mixing sharp retrievals with well-timed attacks to completely flip the momentum and put the pressure back on Nishimoto.

Lakshya Sen times his comeback perfectly to sneak the opening game 21–19. A strong recovery from the Indian, who now has his nose in front against Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto.

Game 2 and Lakshya Sen is off to a much stronger start. The Indian has opened up a handy four-point cushion, leading 8–4 as he looks to tighten his grip on the match.

Lakshya Sen books his spot in the quarterfinals with a commanding performance, defeating Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto in straight sets 21–19, 21–10.

After a tightly contested first game, the Indian turned up the intensity in the second, dominating from start to finish and leaving Nishimoto struggling to keep pace. With this win, Lakshya looks firmly in rhythm as he advances deeper into the tournament.

Tressa-Gayatri edge a thrilling first game 22–20. The Indian women’s doubles pair fight hard and come out on top in a close opener.

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand bow out in a hard-fought Round of 16 clash. After taking the first game 22–20, the Indian duo narrowly lose the next two 22–24, 21–23. It was a long, grueling battle, and while they had their opportunities, they couldn’t capitalize when it mattered most.

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are out on court, taking on Japan’s Hiroki Midorikawa and Kyohei Yamashita.

It goes right down to the wire, with Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty forced to dig deep against Hiroki Midorikawa and Kyohei Yamashita. Under relentless pressure, the Indians stay ice-cool in the crunch moments to edge a gripping opener 27–25.

The second game is just as tight, with neither pair giving an inch. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty match Japan point for point, locked in a tense exchange as the contest stays firmly on a knife’s edge.

Satwik-Chirag head into a decider after letting the second game slip. The Indians were in control for phases but couldn’t close it out, allowing the Japanese pair to sneak away with a 23–21 win and force a deciding game.

Satwik-Chirag bow out, and this one will hurt. After taking a marathon first game, the Indian pair can’t see it through, slipping 27–25, 21–23, 19–21 against Japan’s Hiroki Midorikawa and Kyohei Yamashita in a shock defeat.

With Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty out, all eyes are on Lakshya Sen, the lone Indian left in contention at the 2026 India Open Super 750. The week had promised excitement with a new venue, but things haven’t gone smoothly.

Off-court controversies keep piling up for the Badminton Association of India, and the on-court results haven’t offered much cheer either. Now, it’s all on Lakshya to turn things around and give Indian fans something to celebrate, can he make it to the semi-finals?

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has engaged with players and teams during the YONEX-SUNRISE India Open 2026 to review conditions at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi.

The feedback received — both positive and constructive — is invaluable in shaping the best possible environment for this tournament and future championships. We also acknowledge the comments shared by players and the subsequent media coverage.

Managing factors related largely to seasonal conditions, such as the haze and cold weather affecting the air quality and temperature inside the venue has posed challenges this week. However, our assessments confirm that the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex represents a significant upgrade from KD Jadhav Stadium, offering improved infrastructure.

While some areas of implementation, including general cleanliness and hygiene plus animal control have required attention, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) has acted promptly to address these concerns. Players have also noted the positive enhancements to the playing surface and flooring, gymnasium, and medical facilities.

The move to the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex provides greater space for athletes and officials and meets BWF’s Field of Play requirements for hosting the BWF World Championships. Insights gathered this week will guide further upgrades to deliver a world-class experience in August, where the seasonal issues are not expected being as severe.

Our priority remains ensuring a safe, high-quality environment for all participants, and we are confident this will meet the expectations of all stakeholders. We thank players and teams for their valuable input and reaffirm our commitment to continuous improvement in partnership with BAI.

Men’s Singles:

• Lakshya Sen vs Lin Chun-Yi

• Christo Popov vs Jonatan Christie

• Loh Kean Yew vs Kunlavut Vitidsarn

• Victor Lai vs Chi Yu-jen

Women’s Singles:

• An Se-young vs Putri Kusuma Wardani

• Ratchanok Intanon vs Beiwen Zhang

• Han Yue vs Chen Yufei

• Natsuki Nidaira vs Wang Zhiyi

That’s a wrap for now. We’ll be back with another live blog, until then, bye bye!