Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2026: India men beat Canada 4-1; women go down 2-3 to host Denmark Lakshya Sen endured a tough loss, but Ayush Shetty and the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty registered wins as 2022 champion India notched up a commanding 4-1 win over Canada in its opening Group A tie of the Thomas Cup Finals in Horsens on Friday.
However, there was disappointment in store in the women’s section as India lost 2-3 to host Denmark in the opening Group A tie of the Uber Cup Finals.
After Lakshya’s spirited effort ended in an 18-21, 21-19, 21-10 loss to world No. 13 Victor Lai, World No. 4 Satwik and Chirag levelled the tie with a dominant 21-10, 21-11 win over Jonathan Bing Tsan Lai and Kevin Lee.
The 20-year-old Ayush, runner-up at the recent Asia Championships, then outwitted world No. 33 Brian Yang 21-13, 21-17 in 39 minutes to hand India a 2-1 lead.
The second doubles pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and M R Arjun sealed the tie for India with a convincing 21-7 21-15 victory over Ty Alexander Lindeman and Nyl Yakura.
Kidambi Srikanth then outsmarted world No. 77 Joshua Nguyen 21-17, 21-12 in the inconsequential fifth match as India wrapped up the match 4-1 to be placed second in the table behind China.
China, 11-time winner and defending champion, beat Australia 5-0.
The top two teams from each of the four groups will qualify for the quarterfinals.
“Really happy with the way we played today… although we were down 0-1, we’re happy that we could get a point for the team and make it 1-0.
“We don’t want to keep so many expectations; we just want to enjoy as much as possible. It’s a long tournament; we have a three-day break now. There are new people who have come in; they are young, and everyone is in good spirits,” Satwik told reporters.
“We just want to have some good memories in 10 days because you don’t get time. It’s a team event; let’s have some fun. We’re taking one day at a time.”
In the Uber Cup, India lost 2-3 to host Denmark in their opening tie of Group A.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu put India ahead with a tough 21-13, 18-21, 21-17 win over Denmark’s World No. 21 Line Christophersen.
World No. 3 Unnati Hooda then produced a late fightback and saved multiple match points before going down 12-21, 23-25 against world No. 26 Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt, who won a silver medal at the 2026 European Badminton Championships early this month.
Tanvi Sharma went down to Amalie Schulz 21-19, 16-21, 16-21 in a 54-minute contest after taking the opening game as India trailed 1-2.
In their must-win rubber, the women’s doubles pair of Shruti Mishra and Priya Konjengbam missed two match points before losing the decider to Amalie Cecilie Kudsk and Mette Werge 17-21, 21-11, 21-23 in a one-hour and 15-minute battle.
In the final inconsequential rubber, Tanisha Crasto and PV registered a win after Alexandra Boje and Christine Busch conceded the match in the second game.
The Indian pair had taken the first game 21-19 and were trailing 14-17 when the Danish duo retired after 36 minutes of play.
Lakshya vs Lai
It turned into another energy-sapping contest, reminiscent of the All England semifinal, with Lakshya and Lai locked in long, draining rallies.
Lakshya dictated early with sharp net play and smashes, doing enough to take the opening game despite Lai closing in from 14-18.
Lai hit back after the change of ends, racing to 7-2 and unsettling the Indian with clever deception and changes of pace to lead 11-7.
A 45-shot rally sparked a brief comeback as Lakshya drew level at 12-12, but Lai held firm in the closing stages, edging a tight finish after 19-19 with a net winner and a composed duel.
The decider was one-sided as Lai surged to 4-1 and 10-3, carrying the momentum to 11-5 at the break. Lakshya struggled to keep up as the Canadian mixed precision with power to move to 16-8 before sealing the match when the Indian went long, avenging his Birmingham loss.
India next faces Australia and China on Monday and Wednesday.
Sindhu vs Christophersen
Sindhu started slowly before cruising through the opening game but was pushed into a decider by Christophersen.
The Dane raised her intensity in the second, matching Sindhu stroke for stroke from 6-6 to 11-11 and edging ahead 16-15 before forcing the decider as errors crept into the Indian’s game.
Backed by chants from the Indian camp, Sindhu relied on her deception and angles to stay in the contest.
Christophersen mixed pace well early in the third to lead 4-3, but Sindhu responded with three quick points to go 9-8 up and held a narrow edge at the interval.
The Dane again moved ahead 15-12 but faltered with errors as Sindhu drew level at 15-15.
In a nervy finish, Sindhu held her composure, winning six of the last seven points to move 18-16 ahead before finishing with a body smash and a down-the-line winner to seal the match.
Published on Apr 24, 2026
#Thomas #Uber #Cup #Finals #India #men #beat #Canada #women #host #Denmark
Lakshya Sen endured a tough loss, but Ayush Shetty and the doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty registered wins as 2022 champion India notched up a commanding 4-1 win over Canada in its opening Group A tie of the Thomas Cup Finals in Horsens on Friday.
However, there was disappointment in store in the women’s section as India lost 2-3 to host Denmark in the opening Group A tie of the Uber Cup Finals.
After Lakshya’s spirited effort ended in an 18-21, 21-19, 21-10 loss to world No. 13 Victor Lai, World No. 4 Satwik and Chirag levelled the tie with a dominant 21-10, 21-11 win over Jonathan Bing Tsan Lai and Kevin Lee.
The 20-year-old Ayush, runner-up at the recent Asia Championships, then outwitted world No. 33 Brian Yang 21-13, 21-17 in 39 minutes to hand India a 2-1 lead.
The second doubles pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and M R Arjun sealed the tie for India with a convincing 21-7 21-15 victory over Ty Alexander Lindeman and Nyl Yakura.
Kidambi Srikanth then outsmarted world No. 77 Joshua Nguyen 21-17, 21-12 in the inconsequential fifth match as India wrapped up the match 4-1 to be placed second in the table behind China.
China, 11-time winner and defending champion, beat Australia 5-0.
The top two teams from each of the four groups will qualify for the quarterfinals.
“Really happy with the way we played today… although we were down 0-1, we’re happy that we could get a point for the team and make it 1-0.
“We don’t want to keep so many expectations; we just want to enjoy as much as possible. It’s a long tournament; we have a three-day break now. There are new people who have come in; they are young, and everyone is in good spirits,” Satwik told reporters.
“We just want to have some good memories in 10 days because you don’t get time. It’s a team event; let’s have some fun. We’re taking one day at a time.”
In the Uber Cup, India lost 2-3 to host Denmark in their opening tie of Group A.
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu put India ahead with a tough 21-13, 18-21, 21-17 win over Denmark’s World No. 21 Line Christophersen.
World No. 3 Unnati Hooda then produced a late fightback and saved multiple match points before going down 12-21, 23-25 against world No. 26 Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt, who won a silver medal at the 2026 European Badminton Championships early this month.
Tanvi Sharma went down to Amalie Schulz 21-19, 16-21, 16-21 in a 54-minute contest after taking the opening game as India trailed 1-2.
In their must-win rubber, the women’s doubles pair of Shruti Mishra and Priya Konjengbam missed two match points before losing the decider to Amalie Cecilie Kudsk and Mette Werge 17-21, 21-11, 21-23 in a one-hour and 15-minute battle.
In the final inconsequential rubber, Tanisha Crasto and PV registered a win after Alexandra Boje and Christine Busch conceded the match in the second game.
The Indian pair had taken the first game 21-19 and were trailing 14-17 when the Danish duo retired after 36 minutes of play.
Lakshya vs Lai
It turned into another energy-sapping contest, reminiscent of the All England semifinal, with Lakshya and Lai locked in long, draining rallies.
Lakshya dictated early with sharp net play and smashes, doing enough to take the opening game despite Lai closing in from 14-18.
Lai hit back after the change of ends, racing to 7-2 and unsettling the Indian with clever deception and changes of pace to lead 11-7.
A 45-shot rally sparked a brief comeback as Lakshya drew level at 12-12, but Lai held firm in the closing stages, edging a tight finish after 19-19 with a net winner and a composed duel.
The decider was one-sided as Lai surged to 4-1 and 10-3, carrying the momentum to 11-5 at the break. Lakshya struggled to keep up as the Canadian mixed precision with power to move to 16-8 before sealing the match when the Indian went long, avenging his Birmingham loss.
India next faces Australia and China on Monday and Wednesday.
Sindhu vs Christophersen
Sindhu started slowly before cruising through the opening game but was pushed into a decider by Christophersen.
The Dane raised her intensity in the second, matching Sindhu stroke for stroke from 6-6 to 11-11 and edging ahead 16-15 before forcing the decider as errors crept into the Indian’s game.
Backed by chants from the Indian camp, Sindhu relied on her deception and angles to stay in the contest.
Christophersen mixed pace well early in the third to lead 4-3, but Sindhu responded with three quick points to go 9-8 up and held a narrow edge at the interval.
The Dane again moved ahead 15-12 but faltered with errors as Sindhu drew level at 15-15.
In a nervy finish, Sindhu held her composure, winning six of the last seven points to move 18-16 ahead before finishing with a body smash and a down-the-line winner to seal the match.
Published on Apr 24, 2026
![Kevin Knight is here, he’s hungry, and ready to take over AEW Kevin Knight’s rise has been nothing short of stratospheric. A year that began with Knight having a promising run as one of All Elite Wrestling’s up-and-coming stars morphed over the course of 2026 into something much, much larger. Knight captured individual gold by winning the TNT Championship in April, and now he’s on the precipice of the biggest match of his career. Knight will stand across the ring from AEW World Champion Kenny Omega at Redemption in Montreal, headlining a pay-per-view and looking to shatter expectations in the process.I talked with Knight this week in the lead up to his match against Omega to learn what makes him tick as a wrestler, understand the decision behind joining The Don Callis Family, and learn that in a world of heroes and villans, Knight is perfectly comfortable to exist in the grey area.A turning point for Knight came in May at Double or Nothing when he shocked the world by turning on Darby Allin and joining with Don Callis to close the show. It felt like a staggering rejection of his role as fan-favorite inside the company, but it was clinical for Knight. This wasn’t about trying to become hated, but trying to elevate himself.“The goal has stayed the same,” Knight says, “become Jet 2 Belts.” Not only does he want to hold onto his TNT title, but to win the AEW World Championship as well, asserting himself at the top. “I saw the opportunity to overtake this company after Double or Nothing and figured I need to invest in myself.“Getting myself with the Don Callis Family and, seeing how he moves and how, how he’s brought so many championships to AEW, it was a no-brainer, and it’s been nothing but success ever since.”Knight speaks plainly in a business so influenced by emotion. Joining Callis wasn’t a conscious decision to make fans angry or to reject his longtime friend “Speedball” Mike Bailey, but came about organically, as with any difficult change an athlete needs to make. The NFL player demanding a trade, the NBA star making a decision — Knight is walking the same line.“He’s [Callis] been here from day one, and he’s seen people come and go. He’s seen all different types of performers, so he snatched me up. I was tagged with Speedball Mike Bailey, and he had a smile, and he was just naive to the politics of it all. [Don’s] smartened me up, giving me another angle, another perspective in attacking this game that we call wrestling.”If pro wrestling is a game, then Kenny Omega is its final boss. Not only is “The Best Bout Machine” the world champion, but he is also regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. Knight might have faced a lot of challenges, but fighting Omega in Canada for a championship is on a different level. Still, Knight feels like he might have an edge — and he’s excited to“Always attack his weaknesses, attacking his weaknesses and, and knowing who he is as a person, and, and capitalizing on those weaknesses. Don Callis has known Kenny a long, long, long time, so he’s priming me up. He’s giving me some game on Kenny’s blind spots. We all love Kenny as a person, but he’s careless in some ways — so, whenever I see those openings, I’m definitely gonna definitely going to attack, take advantage.”It’s not lost on Knight that a majority of wrestling fans are writing him off on Sunday. The lingering perception is that Omega will win, move on to All In at Wembley Stadium, and have another epic match against Will Ospreay. That’s a narrative Knight isn’t willing to accept.“People are expecting this long-life anime fantasy between Omega and Osprey. Redemption is gonna be a change of course, and we’re gonna see a new era. We’re gonna see a new superstar rise to the top. I laugh at the people who look past this match. I use it as more fuel, because I love being a spoiler.”It’s big talk, but Kevin Knight has backed it up in recent months. He’s on a nine-match win streak, perfectly part of his “vision board,” which includes winning the AEW World Heavyweight Title, and then involves becoming the face of the company.“If all goes to plan, Jet Two Belts becomes a reality this upcoming Sunday, and I don’t see myself relinquishing it for anybody, that comes my way. I think I will let up and maybe relinquish the TNT title or, you know, let the other people have a little bit of fun. don’t wanna take up all the time at AEW, but AEW is gonna be set up in the next 6 months if The Jet is on top.”The groundwork for this run, this chance at the championship is built on the backs of people who lifted up Kevin Knight along the way. I asked him for his personal wrestling Mount Rushmore, the individuals who have meant the most to him during his career.“Katsuyori Shibata and Kushida, because they helped mold me. From a young lion to my first couple of tours in New Japan and being able to do Impact as well alongside Kushida. Those two guys definitely mean a lot to me. I gotta throw in there Speedball Mike Bailey because one of my first tours in Japan, one of my first matches in TNA/ Impact was against him, and then, of course, our whole run as Jet Speed and everything that we’ve been able to accomplish together. It means a lot to me, on a sentimental level. Fourth, I would like to give it up to Tony Khan just for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to go out there and show the world who and what I am, giving me the opportunity to try new things and just always encouraging me.”This is only the beginning for Kevin Knight, who will be a staple of the pro-wrestling landscape for a long, long time — win or lose.Kevin Knight will face Kenny Omega at AEW Redemption, which will air on Sunday, July 26 from CentreBell in Montreal, Canada, beginning at 6 p.m. ET #Kevin #Knight #hes #hungry #ready #AEW](https://i1.wp.com/platform.sbnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/07/knight.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C4.865499187579%2C100%2C90.269001624842&ssl=1 "Kevin Knight is here, he’s hungry, and ready to take over AEW Kevin Knight’s rise has been nothing short of stratospheric. A year that began with Knight having a promising run as one of All Elite Wrestling’s up-and-coming stars morphed over the course of 2026 into something much, much larger. Knight captured individual gold by winning the TNT Championship in April, and now he’s on the precipice of the biggest match of his career. Knight will stand across the ring from AEW World Champion Kenny Omega at Redemption in Montreal, headlining a pay-per-view and looking to shatter expectations in the process.I talked with Knight this week in the lead up to his match against Omega to learn what makes him tick as a wrestler, understand the decision behind joining The Don Callis Family, and learn that in a world of heroes and villans, Knight is perfectly comfortable to exist in the grey area.A turning point for Knight came in May at Double or Nothing when he shocked the world by turning on Darby Allin and joining with Don Callis to close the show. It felt like a staggering rejection of his role as fan-favorite inside the company, but it was clinical for Knight. This wasn’t about trying to become hated, but trying to elevate himself.“The goal has stayed the same,” Knight says, “become Jet 2 Belts.” Not only does he want to hold onto his TNT title, but to win the AEW World Championship as well, asserting himself at the top. “I saw the opportunity to overtake this company after Double or Nothing and figured I need to invest in myself.“Getting myself with the Don Callis Family and, seeing how he moves and how, how he’s brought so many championships to AEW, it was a no-brainer, and it’s been nothing but success ever since.”Knight speaks plainly in a business so influenced by emotion. Joining Callis wasn’t a conscious decision to make fans angry or to reject his longtime friend “Speedball” Mike Bailey, but came about organically, as with any difficult change an athlete needs to make. The NFL player demanding a trade, the NBA star making a decision — Knight is walking the same line.“He’s [Callis] been here from day one, and he’s seen people come and go. He’s seen all different types of performers, so he snatched me up. I was tagged with Speedball Mike Bailey, and he had a smile, and he was just naive to the politics of it all. [Don’s] smartened me up, giving me another angle, another perspective in attacking this game that we call wrestling.”If pro wrestling is a game, then Kenny Omega is its final boss. Not only is “The Best Bout Machine” the world champion, but he is also regarded as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. Knight might have faced a lot of challenges, but fighting Omega in Canada for a championship is on a different level. Still, Knight feels like he might have an edge — and he’s excited to“Always attack his weaknesses, attacking his weaknesses and, and knowing who he is as a person, and, and capitalizing on those weaknesses. Don Callis has known Kenny a long, long, long time, so he’s priming me up. He’s giving me some game on Kenny’s blind spots. We all love Kenny as a person, but he’s careless in some ways — so, whenever I see those openings, I’m definitely gonna definitely going to attack, take advantage.”It’s not lost on Knight that a majority of wrestling fans are writing him off on Sunday. The lingering perception is that Omega will win, move on to All In at Wembley Stadium, and have another epic match against Will Ospreay. That’s a narrative Knight isn’t willing to accept.“People are expecting this long-life anime fantasy between Omega and Osprey. Redemption is gonna be a change of course, and we’re gonna see a new era. We’re gonna see a new superstar rise to the top. I laugh at the people who look past this match. I use it as more fuel, because I love being a spoiler.”It’s big talk, but Kevin Knight has backed it up in recent months. He’s on a nine-match win streak, perfectly part of his “vision board,” which includes winning the AEW World Heavyweight Title, and then involves becoming the face of the company.“If all goes to plan, Jet Two Belts becomes a reality this upcoming Sunday, and I don’t see myself relinquishing it for anybody, that comes my way. I think I will let up and maybe relinquish the TNT title or, you know, let the other people have a little bit of fun. don’t wanna take up all the time at AEW, but AEW is gonna be set up in the next 6 months if The Jet is on top.”The groundwork for this run, this chance at the championship is built on the backs of people who lifted up Kevin Knight along the way. I asked him for his personal wrestling Mount Rushmore, the individuals who have meant the most to him during his career.“Katsuyori Shibata and Kushida, because they helped mold me. From a young lion to my first couple of tours in New Japan and being able to do Impact as well alongside Kushida. Those two guys definitely mean a lot to me. I gotta throw in there Speedball Mike Bailey because one of my first tours in Japan, one of my first matches in TNA/ Impact was against him, and then, of course, our whole run as Jet Speed and everything that we’ve been able to accomplish together. It means a lot to me, on a sentimental level. Fourth, I would like to give it up to Tony Khan just for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to go out there and show the world who and what I am, giving me the opportunity to try new things and just always encouraging me.”This is only the beginning for Kevin Knight, who will be a staple of the pro-wrestling landscape for a long, long time — win or lose.Kevin Knight will face Kenny Omega at AEW Redemption, which will air on Sunday, July 26 from CentreBell in Montreal, Canada, beginning at 6 p.m. ET #Kevin #Knight #hes #hungry #ready #AEW")
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