After a dream start on Day 1, the second day of action was a mixed day for the Indian contingent at the BWF World Championship 2026 in New Delhi at the Indira Gandhi Stadium, but all four singles participants of the country remained alive as both Unnati Hooda and Lakshya Sen started their campaign with a victory on Tuesday (August 18).
Lakshya, who is seeded 14th in the tournament, survived a major scare against World No. 128 Collins Valentine Filimon of Austria on court number 1. The 2021 bronze medallist lost the first set 21-16 but made a strong comeback to seal victory by winning the next two sets comfortably by a 21-8, 21-4 margin.
18-year-old Hooda impressed on her World Championship debut with a straight-sets victory. The teenager defeated Thet Htar Thuzar from Myanmar in a clash of two unseeded players in a 40-minute match on the first court.
Doubles Disappointment
However, there was disappointment for the host nation in mixed doubles, as both their participating pairs were knocked out in the round of 64. Both Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde, as well as Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh, lost to Jonathan Bing Tsan Lai/Crystal Lai and Emre Sonmez and Yasemen Bektas, respectively. Both matches went into the third set and lasted over an hour.
In the women’s doubles, both Indians took the court for the second time in the competition. On the day it was announced that they have won the Arjuna award, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullelas secured their place in the Round of 16. However, Kavipriya Selvam/Simran Singhi crashed out of the competition.
India Results On Day 2 At BWF World Championships
Mixed Doubles, Round of 64: Rohan Kapoor/Ruthvika Shivani Gadde lost to Canada’s Jonathan Bing Tsan Lai/Crystal Lai 20-22, 21-19, 17-21.
Women’s Singles, Round of 64: Unnati Hooda beat Myanmar’s Thet Htar Thuzar 22-20, 21-16.
Women’s Doubles, Round of 32: Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand Pullela beat USA’s Lauren Lam/Allison Quynh Lee 21-15, 21-12.
Men’s Singles, Round of 64: Lakshya Sen beat Austria’s Collins Valentine Filimon 16-21, 21-8, 21-4.
Women’s Doubles, Round of 32: Kavipriya Selvam/Simran Singhi lost to Bulgaria’s Gabriela Stoeva/Stefani Stoeva 7-21, 14-21.
Mixed Doubles, Round of 64: Ashith Surya/Amrutha Pramuthesh lost to Türkiye’s Emre Sonmez/Yasemen Bektas 21-16, 29-30, 24-26.