India Women Outplay Ukraine 4–1 to Open Account in TUC 2026

New Delhi — India’s young women’s badminton team secured their first victory at the Thomas & Uber Cup 2026 with a commanding 4–1 win over Ukraine in their second Group A tie in Horsens, Denmark, on Sunday.

India chose to rest former world champion PV Sindhu for the singles matches, handing an opportunity to Thailand Masters 2026 winner Devika Sihag in the third singles slot.

Unnati Hooda gave India a strong start, edging past Polina Buhrova 21-19, 22-20. Rising star Tanvi Sharma then doubled the lead with a solid 21-12, 17-21, 21-10 win over Yevheniia Kantemyr.

Devika Sihag sealed the tie in India’s favour, defeating Mariia Stoliarenko 23-21, 21-13 in straight games.

Ukraine’s only point came in the first women’s doubles, where Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi went down 11-21, 17-21 against Buhrova and Kantemyr. However, the Indian pair of Tanisha Crasto and Sindhu wrapped up the contest with a 21-18, 21-15 victory over Stoliarenko and Sofiia Lavrova.

India will now face defending champions China in their final group match on Monday, a must-win encounter to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive.

Earlier in the tournament, the Indian men’s team made a strong start with a 4–1 win over Canada, while the women had narrowly lost 2–3 to Denmark in their opening Group A tie.

Despite Lakshya Sen losing the opening men’s singles to Victor Lai, India bounced back impressively. Sen went down 18-21, 21-19, 21-10 in a closely fought contest.

The experienced doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty leveled the tie with a dominant 21-10, 21-11 win.

Ayush Shetty then put India ahead with a 21-13, 21-17 victory over Brian Yang. The pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun sealed the tie comfortably, before Kidambi Srikanth completed the 4–1 scoreline with a straight-games win over Joshua Nguyen.

Women’s Result:
India bt Ukraine 4–1 (Unnati Hooda bt Polina Buhrova 21-19, 22-20; Tanvi Sharma bt Yevheniia Kantemyr 21-12, 17-21, 21-10; Devika Sihag bt Mariia Stoliarenko 23-21, 21-13; Kavipriya Selvam/Simran Singhi lost to Buhrova/Kantemyr 11-21, 17-21; Tanisha Crasto/PV Sindhu bt Sofiia Lavrova/Stoliarenko 21-18, 21-15)

With inputs from IANS