India’s badminton team turns its attention to individual events at the Thailand Open 2026 in Bangkok, with Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu leading the charge after a bronze medal finish at the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals.
The squad enters the Super 500 tournament with a mix of experienced and young players.
Lakshya Sen, seeded seventh, returns after an elbow injury and opens against Singapore’s Jason Teh Jia Heng, while rising star Ayush Shetty faces a tough challenge against Japan’s Kodai Naraoka. Veteran Kidambi Srikanth takes on Loh Kean Yew in a high-profile rematch of the 2021 World Championships final, and Tharun Mannepalli meets Japan’s Koki Watanabe.
PV Sindhu begins her Thailand Open 2026 campaign against Chinese Taipei’s Tung Ciou-Tong, aiming to regain consistency after a mixed season outside the top 10. Unnati Hooda faces fourth seed Pornpawee Chochuwong, while Malvika Bansod plays Wen Yu Zhang and Anmol Kharb meets former Olympic champion Chen Yufei. Devika Sihag, Tanvi Sharma and Isharani Baruah are also in action.
In men’s doubles, top seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty open against Indonesia’s Muh Putra Erwiansyah and Bagas Maulana as they chase a third Thailand Open title after victories in 2019 and 2024. Hariharan Amsakarunan, MR Arjun, and mixed/women’s doubles pairs including Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto are also competing.
