The thrill of 'BWF World Championships 2026', the highest and most prestigious global competition of world badminton, is going to start tomorrow i.e. Monday, 17th August in the country's capital New Delhi. This 30th edition, running from 17 to 23 August, will be organized at the state-of-the-art 'Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium' in New Delhi. This moment is extremely historic for Indian sports lovers, as the prestigious tournament returns to Indian soil after a long gap of 17 years. Earlier, India had successfully hosted the World Championship in Hyderabad in the year 2009. Considered equivalent to the Olympic Games, this tournament will see over 350 ace shuttlers from over 50 top countries across the world give their all to be crowned world champions and garner maximum ranking points in all five main events—men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles. PV Sindhu's 'Mission Gold' in front of the home audience: Eyes set on 6th medal, the Indian challenge will be led by the country's most successful badminton player and former world champion PV Sindhu. 9th seed Sindhu, who has so far won 5 medals including 1 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze in the World Championship, will once again take to the court with the intention of creating history. Sindhu, who is in great form after recently winning the Japan Open, will start her campaign with the first round match against Sophia Nobel of Ireland. If Sindhu overcomes the initial hurdles, she may face third seed Wang Zi Yi of China in the pre-quarterfinals. At the press conference, Sindhu said that playing amidst the huge support of her home crowd always gives extra energy, and she is all set to repeat her golden performance of 2019 on Delhi soil after seven years. Lakshya Sen's test in men's singles and young Ayush Shetty's litmus test India's biggest hope in men's singles category will be 14th seeded Lakshya Sen. 24-year-old Lakshya Sen, who won the bronze medal in the 2021 World Championships and reached the semi-finals of the Paris Olympics, is known for his aggressive play and excellent court coverage. Lakshya Sen will begin his campaign against Collens Valentine Philimon in his first round clash. At the same time, India's 22nd ranked young talented player Ayush Shetty is going to make his debut in the World Championship. However, Ayush has got the toughest and challenging draw in the very first round in the form of world number-1 player and current world champion Shi Yu Qi of China. Indian fans will be keeping an eye on whether young Ayush can pull off a big upset against the most dangerous shuttler in the world. Historic doubles gold hopes from Satwik-Chirag: Indian camp strong in doubles. India's star pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty has been seeded 5th in the men's doubles event. This pair, which has previously won a bronze medal in the World Championship, is considered to be a strong contender to give India its first historic world gold medal in men's doubles on its home ground this time. Apart from them, the pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun will also present the Indian challenge in men's doubles. Details of other Indian players and pairings: Women's doubles: The talented pair of Trisa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela will lead the Indian campaign, while the pair of Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi will also be in action in the main draw. Women's Singles: Apart from veteran PV Sindhu, young sensation Unnati Hooda will also represent the country in women's singles. Mixed Doubles: Apart from the 15th seeded pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto, the pair of Rohan Kapoor and Rutvika Shivani will take to the court. Gathering of foreign giants: Ahn Se Young, Kunlavut Vitidsarn and Akane Yamaguchi will compete. In this World Championship held in Delhi, the entire army of current and former Olympic and World champions will be present. In the women's singles, there will be a tough competition between South Korea's current Olympic and 2023 world champion An Se Young, Japan's three-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi, China's Olympic champion Chen Yufei and 2026 All England champion Wang Zi Yi. In the men's singles, top players like China's Shi Yuqi as well as Thailand's current world silver medalist Kunlavut Vitidsarn, Denmark's Anders Antonsen and Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen will take the court as the strongest contenders for the title. BWF World Championships 2026: Complete 7-day tournament schedule The tournament will be played in morning to evening sessions daily from August 17 to August 23 in a knockout format: August 17 (Monday): Round of 64 (Men's Singles, Women's Singles) and Round of 48 (Doubles). 18 August (Tuesday): Remaining matches of the first round and start of the Round of 32. August 19 (Wednesday): Round of 32 matches in all five categories. 20 August (Thursday): Round of 16 (Pre-quarterfinal matches). August 21 (Friday): Quarter-final matches of all five categories (medal round battle). 22 August (Saturday): Semi-final matches (matches to ensure bronze medal). 23 August (Sunday): Title matches (Grand Finale of all five categories). Live telecast and ticket information: Know where and how to watch the match The live telecast of this historic tournament for badminton lovers in India will be available on TV on Sports18 / JioCinema and on the official digital platforms of BWF. Apart from this, spectators wishing to watch the game in the capital Delhi can book tickets for various stands of Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium through BookMyShow and official ticket counters. After 17 years, this Mahakumbh of badminton in the country is not only giving a golden opportunity to the young Indian players to shine in domestic conditions, but the eyes of the Indian sports world are fixed on whether our shuttlers will be able to write a new story of medals on this huge stage of Delhi.
