The draws for the 2026 BWF World Championships, which will be held in New Delhi from August 17 to 23, took place on Wednesday.
After the draw, Pullela Gopichand shared his thoughts on India’s chances at the tournament. He spoke about Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty and the return of the World Championships to India after 17 years.
Lakshya Sen, who won a bronze medal at the 2021 World Championships, will once again be one of India’s biggest hopes. Gopichand believes the Indian shuttler is now a more mature and experienced player, but admitted that the competition will not be easy.
“Lakshya has had some good tournaments. He has won some big tournaments, but he has also missed out on a few big ones. Today, I would say Lakshya is much more mature. He has more experience on his side and has been able to win some big tournaments, but it will be tough,” he said.
Despite that, Gopichand believes Lakshya has the ability to beat the world’s best players on his day.
“Having said that, on a good day, Lakshya is capable of beating anybody in the world,” he added.
Gopichand also feels the home conditions and the time Lakshya has had to prepare could work in his favour.
“With the home conditions and the time he has had for preparation over the last few weeks, I think we can expect some good results from him.”
He added that Lakshya definitely has a chance of winning a medal.
“Many players have performed well at different tournaments, so it depends on the particular day. But Lakshya definitely has a chance.”
Gopichand also welcomed the return of the World Championships to India after 17 years. He said it was wonderful to see the tournament back in the country and highlighted how much Indian badminton has grown since India last hosted the event.
“I think it is wonderful to have the World Championships back in India. Back in the day, when India was an emerging badminton nation, it was one of the first big events to be hosted here. At that time, sport was not as big as it is today.”
He added that he was happy to see India hosting another major badminton event.
“Today, we are looking at a new India that aspires to host some of the biggest sporting events in the world. I am personally very happy to see the World Championships return. The support from the government and the Badminton Association of India is also very important.”
Gopichand was also happy with the draw for the Indian players.
“Overall, it looks like a good draw from an Indian perspective.”
Among the opening round matches, the one he is looking forward to the most is Ayush Shetty’s clash against Shi Yu Qi.
“Ayush is going to play his first match against Shi Yu Qi. I think Ayush Shetty is also a very good player, so the match is going to be a tough and physically demanding match.”
