India’s teenage badminton sensation Tanvi Sharma scripted history by clinching her maiden BWF World Tour Super 300 title at the Taipei Open 2026, defeating Vietnam’s sixth seed Nguyen Thuy Linh in straight games to become the youngest champion in the tournament’s history.
The 17-year-old produced a composed display to beat Nguyen 21-16, 21-16 in the women’s singles final on Sunday, becoming only the second Indian woman after Saina Nehwal (2008) to lift the Taipei Open title.
The victory also ended India’s 17-year wait for a title at the tournament, with the country’s last triumph coming in 2009 when Jwala Gutta and V Diju won the mixed doubles crown during the Grand Prix Gold era.
The landmark triumph also made Tanvi only the fourth Indian women’s singles player to win a BWF World Tour Super 300 or higher title, joining an elite list comprising Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu and Devika Sihag. At 17 years and 222 days, she also became the youngest finalist and youngest champion in Taipei Open history.
In the opening game, Tanvi quickly asserted her dominance, racing to a 10-2 lead. Although Nguyen narrowed the gap to 10-8, the Indian was never behind and comfortably took the first game 21-16.
The second game saw Tanvi trailing 0-3 early on, but she quickly recovered to take the lead, eventually extending her advantage to seven points. Showcasing an attacking strategy, she never let her opponent slow down, utilising great cross-court shots and precise placement. She maintained her momentum to seal the game 21-16, taking the final point with a brilliant cross-court drop shot to wrap up the summit clash in just 36 minutes.
With this win, she becomes only the fourth Indian women’s singles shuttler to secure a Super 300 or higher-level title, joining an elite club alongside Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, and Devika Sihag. She also becomes the third-youngest player in the world to win a BWF Super 300 event.
Reflecting on her phenomenal campaign, Tanvi shared, “I’m really happy to win this title. Going step by step and match by match, I just wanted to give my best here and felt I played really well throughout the tournament. I was quite nervous, but I told myself to give 100 percent and stick to my game.”
This was only the second BWF World Tour title match of Tanvi’s young career, coming slightly over a year after she finished runner-up to Beiwen Zhang at the US Open. At 17 years and 222 days, she also became the youngest finalist in tournament history, eclipsing Korean doubles legend Lee Yong Dae, who was 17 years and 287 days when he reached the men’s doubles title bout in 2006.