Thomas & Uber Cup 2026: Indian women face first group stage exit in 8 years

The Indian women's team suffered a 0-5 loss against China in the final group tie, ending their campaign in the group stage of the 2026 Uber Cup in Horsens, Denmark, on Monday.

In a must-win encounter against the 16-time champions, India could not offer much resistance, finishing third in their group.

In the first match of the tie, the experienced PV Sindhu put up a good fight against the world no.2 Wang Zhi Yi but fell just short 16-21, 21-19, 19-21.

The two-time Olympic medalist was leading 18-15 in the last game, before Wang staged a comeback and snatched the game 21-19 to give China a 1-0 lead.

After that, the young Indian doubles pair of Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra lost 11-21, 8-21 to Liu Sheng Siu and Tan Ning in the first doubles match.

Following that, the Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei survived a first-game scare against young Indian shuttler Isharani Baruah to win the match 22-20, 21-13 in straight games.

In the last two matches, the doubles pair of Tanisha Crasto and Kavipriya Selvam, as well as women's singles player Devika Sihag, suffered three-game defeats.

This, combined with their earlier defeat to Denmark, led to India’s group stage exit for the first time in eight years, since the 2018 Uber Cup.

On the other hand, the Indian men's team confirmed the spot in the quarter-finals with their second consecutive group win against Australia earlier in the day.