India’s Ayush Shetty Shocks World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi in Thrilling BWF Worlds Opener

India’s Ayush Shetty produced the biggest upset of the opening day of the 2026 BWF World Championships, defeating top seed and World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi of China in a thrilling first-round battle at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

A memorable #BWFWorldChampionships debut for 🇮🇳 Ayush Shetty! 🔥 #NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/z3MPJDA0WP

— BWF (@bwfmedia) August 17, 2026

The 21-year-old Indian prevailed 21-14, 13-21, 21-19 after 73 minutes of high-intensity badminton, sending the home crowd into celebration and announcing his arrival on the world stage in spectacular fashion.

Top seed An Se Young 🇰🇷 takes on Kaloyana Nalbantova 🇧🇬.#BWFWorldChampionships #NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/uOGUxVRhTU

— BWF (@bwfmedia) August 17, 2026

Making his World Championship debut, Shetty started strongly and controlled the opening game. Shi Yu Qi, the defending World Champion, responded emphatically in the second game to force a decider. The Indian youngster, however, maintained his composure under pressure and edged the deciding game 21-19 to complete a memorable victory.

Fabulous shot! 🤩

Follow live action: https://t.co/TjoFnU4PnB#BWFWorldChampionships #NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/WszOH8916d

— BWF (@bwfmedia) August 17, 2026

The result marks one of the biggest opening-round shocks in the tournament and puts Shetty into the Round of 32 with significant momentum.

PV Sindhu Makes Winning Start

India’s five-time World Championship medalist PV Sindhu also enjoyed a comfortable opening-round victory. She defeated Ireland’s Sophia Noble 21-7, 21-11 in straight games to progress without much trouble.

An unconventional winner! 😎

Follow live action: https://t.co/TjoFnU4PnB#BWFWorldChampionships #NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/ZXdovNQTX8

— BWF (@bwfmedia) August 17, 2026

World No. 1 An Se-young of South Korea also advanced safely, defeating Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova 21-14, 21-13.
China’s Wang Zhiyi beat USA’s Zhang Beiwen 21-12, 21-13 in 36 minutes, while fellow Chinese player Li Shifeng cruised past Kazakhstan’s Dmitriy Panarin 21-7, 21-10.

No.3 seed Wang Zhi Yi 🇨🇳 faces Beiwen Zhang 🇺🇸.#BWFWorldChampionships #NewDelhi2026 pic.twitter.com/kx0lfZzIr9

— BWF (@bwfmedia) August 17, 2026

There was, however, an early setback for China as 16th seed Weng Hongyang was knocked out by Japan’s Yushi Tanaka, who secured a 21-17, 21-14 victory.

India Enjoys Perfect Day in Doubles

India completed a perfect 5-0 run across its doubles matches on Day 1.

The women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand made an impressive start, defeating Lopez and Rodriguez 21-9, 21-9. MR Arjun and Hariharan Amsakarunan also secured their places in the Round of 32.

Chinese doubles combinations also enjoyed a strong opening day, with Huang Di/Liu Yang, Hu Keyuan/Lin Xiangyi and Luo Yi/Wang Tingge all recording comfortable straight-game victories.

With Ayush Shetty’s stunning victory over the tournament’s top seed providing the headline moment, India’s campaign at the 2026 BWF World Championships has begun on a hugely promising note.