Lakshya Sen Advances in BWF World Championships After Initial Struggles

In a thrilling display at the BWF World Championships, Lakshya Sen initially struggled against Austria's Collins Valentine Filimon but made a remarkable comeback to win the match. After losing the first game, Sen dominated the next two, securing his place in the second round. Meanwhile, Unnati Hooda and India's top women's doubles pair also advanced, while the mixed doubles team faced elimination. Read on to discover more about their performances and upcoming matches.

By Narendra Chaudhary Aug 19, 2026, 05:37 IST

Lakshya Sen's Journey in the BWF World Championships

Lakshya Sen, the sole Indian player ranked in the top 10 for men's singles, faced a challenging start but ultimately secured his spot in the second round of the BWF World Championships. In his opening match against Austria's Collins Valentine Filimon, who is ranked 128th, Sen, seeded 14th, struggled significantly. He was unable to effectively counter Filimon's aggressive style, leading to a disappointing first game where he lost 21-16, much to the dismay of the home crowd.

Despite the rocky start, Sen transformed his performance in the subsequent games, decisively winning 21-8 and 21-4, thus concluding the match in just 45 minutes. Initially, Sen appeared hesitant, particularly with his lifts and line calls, but once he found his rhythm, he dominated the court, scoring 11 consecutive points from a 10-8 deficit in the second game.

Reflecting on his performance, Sen noted, "I was tentative in the first game because I was playing from the difficult side and was struggling to get used to the conditions. But in the second game, I knew that I would be playing from the better side and once I found the range of my shots it was easy." He is set to face American Garret Tan in the next round.

In the women's singles category, Unnati Hooda initially fell behind against Myanmar's Thet Htar Thuzar, trailing 13-16 in the first game. However, she rallied to win 22-20 and 21-16, earning a matchup against 13th seed Canadian Michelle Li in the next round.

India's leading women's doubles team, Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly, triumphed over the 16th seeds, Allison Lee and Lauren Lam, with a score of 21-15, 21-12, advancing to the Round of 16. Unfortunately, the mixed doubles duo of Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh were eliminated after a close match, losing 16-21, 30-29, 24-22 to Turkey's Emre Sonmez and Yasemen Bektas.