BWF World Championships: Sindhu, Ayush, Satwik-Chirag Draw Challenging Opponents

The prestigious BWF World Championships return to India after 17 long years, with New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium hosting the event from August 17-23. The host contingent faces a tricky path in pursuit of medals, with challenging matchups awaiting them in front of the buzzing home crowd.

India’s No. 1 shuttler and ninth seed, PV Sindhu, finds herself placed in the same half as South Korea’s World No. 1, An Se Young (ASY). The five-time World Championships medallist will open her campaign against Ireland’s Sophia Noble in the first round, with potential high-stakes clashes against China’s Wang Zhi Yi in the Round of 16. Indonesia’s Putri Kusuma Wardani, to whom she lost in the quarterfinals of the last edition, could meet her in the last eight, while ASY could await in the semifinals.

In the same women’s singles event, rising talent Unnati Hooda faces Myanmar’s Thet Htar Thuzar in her opening match.

The men’s singles draw handed contrasting fates to India’s top shuttlers. World No. 14 Lakshya Sen, who faced top seed Shi Yu Qi in the opening round of the 2025 edition, avoided another first-round meeting this year. However, unseeded Ayush Shetty was drawn against the Chinese World No. 1 in the opening round. The 14th seed Sen faces Austria’s Collins Valentine first, with a potential pre-quarterfinal showdown looming against Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn.

“Overall, I think it’s a favourable draw,” said Pullela Gopichand after the draw ceremony. One of the big first-round matches will be Shi Yu Qi versus Ayush Shetty. I believe Ayush is a very good player, especially with his attacking style of game. It’s better to play Shi Yu Qi earlier rather than later in the rounds. From that perspective, it opens up the draw much better,” he added.

In men’s doubles, India’s fifth-seeded duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty received a first-round bye. However, they could face Indonesia’s Ryan Indra/Nikolais Joaquin in the second round, Denmark’s Kim Astrup/Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in the third round, and China’s World No. 3 pair and their nemesis, Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, in the quarterfinals. Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Mohammad Fikri could be their opponents in the last four.

Satwik was struggling with shoulder niggles. However, coach Tan Kim Her, after the draw ceremony, confirmed that he is in good shape. The Indians will also avoid Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae until the summit clash, while they will not face another nemesis, Malaysia’s Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, until the final either.

Another home doubles pair, Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun, are locked in against the Irish pair of Scott Guildea and Paul Reynolds in the opening round.

The women’s doubles pairs have also drawn European opposition. Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand take on Spain’s Paula Lopez/Lucia Rodriguez, while Kavipriya Selvam/Simran Singhi square off against Nikol Carulla/Carmen Maria Jimenez.

Fifteenth seeds Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto received a first-round bye in the mixed doubles draw. They could face China’s sixth seeds, Guo Xin Wa and Chen Feng Hui, in the third round. Another home pair, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Gadde, will face Canada’s Jonathan Bin Tang La and Crystal Lai in the opening round, with a potential second-round clash against World No. 1 pair Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping.

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