Thomas & Uber Cup 2026: India look to reclaim lost glory – Preview

The 2026 Thomas and Uber Cup is all set to commence at the Forum Horsens Arena in Denmark on Friday.

Looking to reclaim their lost glory, the Indian men's team will open their campaign in the Thomas Cup against Canada on opening day of the competition.

They'll then face-off against Australia in their second Group match before going up against heavyweights China.

The last time India and China faced off in the Thomas Cup, it ended with a quarter-final exit for India in Chengdu, China. Lakshya Sen was the lone Indian winner in that tie and he'll once again return to lead the 2022 champions.

That tie on April 30 might well decide who tops the group. The winner might get an easier pathway in the knockouts.

The core that won it all is back

The core of the 2022 Thomas Cup winning Indian team remains largely intact with the presence of Sen, Kidambi Srikanth, and HS Prannoy in singles.

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, whose Bangkok final performance against Mohammad Ahsan and Kevin Sukamuljo remains one of the great doubles matches in Thomas Cup history, return to anchor the men’s doubles.

MR Arjun, back from injury will play alongside Hariharan Amsakarunan. Kiran George adds singles depth, and Dhruv Kapila rounds out the squad.

The recent rise of Ayush Shetty also holds India in a good stead. In the context of the Thomas Cup, his presence along with Sen gives India a genuine two-pronged singles threat for the first time in years.

The Group Stage: Reading the Road Ahead

India’s path through the group stage is manageable if they take care of business.

India vs Canada & Australia

Against Canada whose squad includes Victor Lai, who pushed Sen to three games at the All-England semi-final, and Brian Yang, who lost the US Open final to Shetty India have the stronger depth across all five positions. Against Australia, who field a relatively modest squad, the result should be similar.

India vs China

The China match is different in every respect. China’s squad in Horsens includes Shi Yuqi, Li Shi Feng, Weng Hong Yang, and the world-class doubles combination of Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang the same pair that beat Rankireddy and Shetty in the 2024 Thomas Cup quarter-final.

India will be favourites to claim one of the two quarter-final spots from the group alongside China but finishing first rather than second could determine whether they avoid Indonesia in the knockouts and that matters considerably.

India 2026 Thomas Cup Schedule

The Uber Cup: Sindhu Leads, New Voices Follow

India’s women’s team heads to Horsens in the most competitive Uber Cup shape they have had in years and with a draw that, while challenging, is navigable.

Alongside China, they face hosts Denmark and Ukraine in Group A, with their group matches running from April 24 to April 29.

The China match on April 29 will effectively be a dead rubber if India have already secured qualification but the Denmark match on opening day carries real weight, given the hosts’ home-court advantage and their strong doubles.

PV Sindhu leads the charge, and her form coming into this tournament is encouraging after a disrupted run.

After a stop-start 2025 largely spent recovering from injury, Sindhu began 2026 with a semi-final finish at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 her first major tournament back on the circuit and has been finding her rhythm since.

At 30, she remains India’s most experienced and decorated singles player, and her ability to control tempo against higher-ranked opposition will be crucial in the Denmark and China ties.

The doubles is where India needs to worry. After Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand the two-time consecutive Syed Modi International champions, backed out of the Uber Cup with an injury

The doubles now lie to pair of Simran Singhi and Kavipriya Selvam alongside Tanisha Crasto, a Paris 2024 Olympian, adds further doubles flexibility, while the second pair of Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra will have a lot to prove and perform

The singles depth behind Sindhu is the exciting as Devika Sihag arrives after a title-winning run at the Thailand Masters earlier this year. Isharani Baruah comes in off a semi-final finish at the Orleans Masters.

Unnati Hooda, who has already won three senior titles at a young age, adds further firepower. And Tanvi Sharma still a teenager, already one of the most watched players on the junior-to-senior transition continues to build a reputation that grows with every tournament.

India’s best Uber Cup finishes came in 2014 and 2016, when they finished third.

Uber Cup Group Stages

Indian Squads - Thomas & Uber Cup 2026

Thomas Cup: Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy, Kiran George, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, Chirag Shetty, Hariharan Amsakarunan, MR Arjun, Dhruv Kapila.

Uber Cup: PV Sindhu, Unnati Hooda, Tanvi Sharma, Devika Sihag, Isharani Baruah, Shruti Mishra, Priya Konjenbam, Kavipriya Selvam, Simran Singhi, Tanisha Crasto

Where to Watch?

You can catch all the LIVE action from the 2026 Thomas and Uber Cup on the Star Sports Network and Jio Hotstar in India.