India made a strong start at the Badminton Asia Team Championships 2026, registering victories in both the men’s and women’s team events on Tuesday. The men’s team clinched a narrow 3-2 win over Singapore, while the defending champion women’s side dominated Myanmar to book an early place in the quarterfinals.
In the men’s tie against Singapore, India were pushed to the limit before former world number one Kidambi Srikanth delivered the decisive point. Srikanth won his singles match in straight games against Koh Jia Wei Joel, sealing the contest 3-2 after the teams were locked at 2-2.
Earlier in the tie, Lakshya Sen went down in a close three-game match to Loh Kean Yew, giving Singapore an early advantage.
India responded through the experienced men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, who won convincingly in straight games. Ayush Shetty then put India ahead again with a composed singles win, but Singapore forced a decider by taking the second men’s doubles match.
Indian women dominate Myanmar to reach quarters
The Indian women’s team, defending champions at the continental event, had little trouble in their opening Group tie against Myanmar, securing a comprehensive 5-0 victory.
Tanvi Sharma set the tone with a straight-game win in the opening singles, followed by Rakshitha Sree, who dropped just six points in her match. Malvika Bansod continued the dominance in the third singles, controlling the rallies to win comfortably.
In the doubles matches, Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra claimed the first women’s doubles encounter in straight games, before Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand wrapped up the tie with a commanding performance in the final match.
With the clean sweep, India confirmed their place in the quarterfinals and underlined their status as strong contenders to defend the title at the Badminton Asia Team Championships 2026.
