Indian Open 2026: Top Indian shuttlers look to convert recent form to results on home courts
India’s top shuttlers, including P.V. Sindhu and Lakshya Sen, will look to convert recent form into results on home courts when the USD 950,000 India Open Super 750 begins here on Tuesday.
Indian players, however, have struggled to fully capitalise on home advantage, with only a handful of them lifting the title in the last 15 years.
The draw will once again throw up early challenges for the home contingent, including a marquee all-Indian men’s singles opener between Sen and Ayush Shetty, while Sindhu begins against Vietnam’s Nguyen Thuy Linh.
Sindhu, a 2017 champion, comes into the Delhi leg on the back of a confidence-boosting run at the Malaysia Open Super 1000, where she reached the semifinals before losing to China’s Wang Zhiyi.
The tournament, to be held at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, marked a timely lift for the two-time Olympic medallist after an injury-interrupted phase.
“It’s always nice to be playing the Indian Open in Delhi every time at the start of the year. I’m really happy to be playing at the home ground, we will put our best effort and give our 100% and hope we get some good results here,” Sindhu said.
Sen, a 2022 India Open champion, has also had a volatile start to the season. He ended 2025 by winning the Australian Open Super 500 and then suffered a setback at the Malaysia Open.
Ayush, on the other hand, announced himself last year by winning the US Open Super 300 and has beaten the likes of Kodai Naraoka, Loh Kean Yew, Chou Tien Chen and Brian Yang.
Last week, the 20-year-old from Karnataka, a bronze medallist at the 2023 World Junior Championships, upset Paris bronze medallist Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia in the first round.
At Kuala Lumpur, Sen had lost to Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk Yiu, who now awaits HS Prannoy in the India Open first round.
A 2015 winner, Kidambi Srikanth, who reached the finals of Malaysia Masters Super 500 and Syed Modi International in 2025, has been drawn against fellow Indian Tharun Mannepalli after the withdrawal of top seed China’s Shi Yu Qi and Li Shi Feng.
India’s best podium hopes again hinge significantly on the men’s doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
They have reached two finals in the last four editions, winning the crown in 2022.
The Indian duo finished runners-up at Hong Kong Open and China Masters, won a second world championships bronze, and also reached the knockout stage of World Tour Finals last year.
However, Satwik and Chirag ended their campaign at Malaysia Open in the quarterfinals and they will look to make amends when they open against Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith. In women’s singles, apart from Sindhu, India will bank on Malvika Bansod, who faces Chinese Taipei’s Pai Yu Po, while young Tanvi Sharma, silver winner at World Junior Championships, was handed a last minute entry following the withdrawal of Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi. The Indian will open against Chinese second seed Wang Zhi Yi.
A cluster of young Indians will also look to use the home conditions to push into the latter rounds.
In the women’s doubles, the top Indian pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela will meet Thailand’s Ornnicha Jongsathapornparn and Sukitta Suwachai.
Treesa and Gayatri arrive with momentum after defending their title at the Syed Modi International Super 300 in Lucknow last month.
The tournament also offers exposure to India’s next rung of doubles combinations.
Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra face Hong Kong’s Lui Lok Lok and Tsang Hiu Yan, while Rutaparna Panda and Swetaparna Panda take on Japan’s Nanako Hara and Riko Kiyose.
In another women’s doubles tie, Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi run into second seeds Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan of Malaysia.
Mixed doubles presents its own set of tests.
Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto face Thailand’s Pakkapon Teeraratsakul and Sapsiree Taerattanachai, while Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde open against Germany’s Marvin Seidel and Thuc Phuong Nguyen.
Another Indian pair, Dhruv Rawat and Maneesha K, take on Japan’s Hiroki Midorikawa and Nami Matsuyama, and Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh face Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara.
Kapila and Crasto will particularly look for a sharper showing after a Malaysia Open first-round exit, and the India Open becomes a key opportunity to build rhythm ahead of a hectic season.
It will also be the first time that the prestigious event will be held at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, which will act as a test venue for the BWF World Championships in August.
A total of 256 players from 20 countries including international stars such as Kunlavut Vitidsarn and An Se Young will headline the tournament which will see 28 Indians competing.
Published on Jan 12, 2026