Defending men’s singles champion Shi Yu Qi has been handed a challenging first-round clash against India’s rising star Ayush Shetty at the BWF World Championships 2026 in New Delhi.
Top seed Shi enters the tournament after winning the Badminton Asia Championships earlier this year, where he defeated Shetty in the final. The rematch is expected to be one of the standout opening-round encounters.
India head coach Pullela Gopichand believes the draw presents a good opportunity for the home team, especially for Shetty.
“Ayush is a very strong attacking player, and facing Shi in the first round could actually be an advantage. If he can pull off the upset, it opens up the draw significantly,” said Gopichand.
In the women’s singles, top seed An Se Young begins her bid to reclaim the world title against Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova. The 2023 champion shares her quarter with Mia Blichfeldt, fifth seed Han Yue and fellow Korean Kim Ga Eun.
All 16 seeded pairs in the three doubles events receive first-round byes. Defending men’s doubles champions Kim Won Ho and Seo Seung Jae will open their campaign in the second round against either European silver medallists Christo Popov and Toma Junior Popov or Japan’s Takumi Nomura and Yuichi Shimogami.
