Now Reading: Lakshya Sen knocked out of BWF Worlds in second round
-
01
Lakshya Sen knocked out of BWF Worlds in second round
Lakshya Sen's campaign at the BWF World Championships 2026 ended in the second round with a 19-21, 21-19, 21-17 loss to 18-year-old American Garret Tan in New Delhi on Wednesday. The 14th-seeded Indian, a 2021 bronze medallist, won the first game but could not hold off Tan, who used powerful smashes and deception to take control. Tan took a medical timeout after hitting his head during a slide in the decider but returned to seal the match. Sen admitted he was exhausted and credited his opponent for playing a solid game.
PV Sindhu and Ayush Shetty advanced to the pre-quarterfinals with straight-game wins. Sindhu beat Canada's Wen Yu Zhang 21-16, 21-17, while Shetty thrashed Sri Lanka's Dumindu Abeywickrama 21-8, 21-10. Unnati Hooda lost a tight match to Canada's 13th seed Michelle Li 11-21, 21-9, 21-23. In doubles, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty got a walkover after their Scottish opponents withdrew due to injury, and Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also advanced. India's singles hopes now rest on Sindhu and Shetty.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Coverage of Lakshya Sen's exit is uniformly neutral-report across all sources, with no ideological slant. The Hindu and Hindustan Times provided the most detailed match reports, including Tan's medical timeout and Sen's post-match comments. Times Now framed it as a major blow to India's medal hopes and noted India's continued wait for a multiple men's singles medallist. All sources agreed on the key facts: Sen led early, Tan dominated after the second game, and the upset was significant. Readers should watch how Shetty and Sindhu perform in the next rounds, as India's campaign narrows to two singles players.
Coverage: 12 sources, 11 neutral, 1 sensationalist
Sources (12): sports.ndtv.com (neutral report), zeenews.india.com (neutral report), deccanchronicle.com (neutral report), hindustantimes.com (neutral report), indiatvnews.com (sensationalist), deccanchronicle.com (2) (neutral report), timesnownews.com (neutral report), timesnownews.com (2) (neutral report), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report), hindustantimes.com (2) (neutral report), thehindu.com (neutral report), thehindu.com (2) (neutral report)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 12 sources linked above. Methodology and corrections.
Updated: this story now draws on 12 sources.
