India vs France live streaming: All you need to know about Thomas Cup semis
Thomas Cup 2026 semi-finals: India will have their work cut out on Saturday, May 2, as they take on giant-killers France in the semi-final of the Thomas Cup 2026. With a strong singles line-up, France will be up for the test but India will once again bank on Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty and Satwik-Chirag to step up and deliver the win.
When the Thomas Cup quarterfinal between India and Chinese Taipei got underway in Horsens, you could sense a bit of tension amongst the Indian contingent. Since their historic triumph in 2022, India has never made it past the final 8 stage of the tournament.
And there was a familiar sinking feeling as we reached a crucial juncture of the match between Lakshya Sen and Chou Tien-chen as the Indian ace was staring at defeat, down by two match points in game two. Fit enough to make it to the climax of an Indian sports bollywood movie, Lakshya conjured strength from the badminton gods to spark a comeback, and this proved to be the template followed in the next two games.
THOMAS CUP: INDIA vs FRANCE LIVE UPDATES
The semi-final between India and France is scheduled to begin no earlier than 9:30 pm IST (6 pm local time). Live streaming will be available on JioHotstar, while television coverage will be broadcast on Star Sports.
Satwik-Chirag earned a hard-fought three-game win against Chinese Taipei’s top doubles team of Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi-Lin. Then it was the chance of the star boy of Indian badminton, Ayush Shetty to step up.
The Asian Championships silver medallist took down the All England champion in straight games, overcoming a 10-12 deficit. This ended the four-year wait to make it to the semi-finals but the job isn't done. Infact, it is far from it.
Standing up against them is France. Not a lot of people expected them to make it to the semi-finals, yet here they are, upsetting the odds and showing no regard for reputation.
Their biggest win came in their Group D encounter against 14-time champions Indonesia as they beat them 4-1. This was followed up with a 3-0 drubbing of 2014 champions Japan on Friday, to reach their maiden Thomas Cup semi-final and guarantee themselves a medal.
A win will see India reach the summit clash for the first time since their historic win in 2022 and they will be up against China or Denmark on Sunday, May 3.
INDIA VS FRANCE LINE-UP (World ranking in brackets)
- Ayush Shetty (18) vs Christo Popov (4) - 9:30 PM IST
- Alex Lanier (10) vs Kidambi Srikkanth (30) - Not before 10:30 PM IST
- Toma Jr. Popov (17) vs HS Prannoy (35) - Not before 11:10 PM IST
- Eloi Adam/Leo Rossi (52) vs Hariharan Amsakarunnan/M.R. Arjun (34) - Not before 12 am IST
- Christo/Toma Jr. Popov (21) vs Satwik-Chirag (4) - Not before 12:50 am IST
THOMAS CUP SEMI-FINAL: PREDICTION
The India vs France match is expected to be a true 50-50 battle on Saturday. The strength for the French side will be the depth they have in the singles department.
Christo Popov is ranked No.4 in the world and will lead the French challenge. He will have Alex Lanier for company and the World No.10 is expected to prove to be a stern test for the Indian shuttlers.
Toma Jr. Popov is the third big name, and his experience will be key. What France did against Japan was to ensure that the doubles contests weren't needed. But that may not be the case when it comes to Saturday
Lakshya, Ayush and Kiran George are familiar with the challenge from Popovs, having trained with them in the run-up to the Paris Olympics.
With the form that Ayush is in at the moment, the rankings don't really matter for them and nor do the big-name reputation. Popov has won the only match between the two but expect the Indian ace to challenge the World No.4.
With Lakshya not being a part of the lineup, it will be time for Srikkanth to step up for the game and secure the win. Same can be said about HS Prannoy, who will take Toma Jr. and look to get revenge on him for the loss he got during their 2025 All England Open clash.
If France gets pulled into the deep end of the doubles ties, then they will have the Popovs competing in the last tie. There, India will keep their trump cards, Satwik-Chirag ready. The Indian duo have beaten the Popov brothers twice during their previous encounters.
With the quarterfinals, semis and final being played on consecutive days, the only major concern seems to be fatigue and player recovery. If both sides are able to overcome this, then expect a battle for the ages.
"We believe that we can go all the way. It's always been like this. We have a solid team and everyone believes that we can do it," Ayush told PTI after the win.
India will be hoping that his words turn out to be gold and they can make the final one more time and challenge for the crown.
When the Thomas Cup quarterfinal between India and Chinese Taipei got underway in Horsens, you could sense a bit of tension amongst the Indian contingent. Since their historic triumph in 2022, India has never made it past the final 8 stage of the tournament.
And there was a familiar sinking feeling as we reached a crucial juncture of the match between Lakshya Sen and Chou Tien-chen as the Indian ace was staring at defeat, down by two match points in game two. Fit enough to make it to the climax of an Indian sports bollywood movie, Lakshya conjured strength from the badminton gods to spark a comeback, and this proved to be the template followed in the next two games.
THOMAS CUP: INDIA vs FRANCE LIVE UPDATES
The semi-final between India and France is scheduled to begin no earlier than 9:30 pm IST (6 pm local time). Live streaming will be available on JioHotstar, while television coverage will be broadcast on Star Sports.
Satwik-Chirag earned a hard-fought three-game win against Chinese Taipei’s top doubles team of Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi-Lin. Then it was the chance of the star boy of Indian badminton, Ayush Shetty to step up.
The Asian Championships silver medallist took down the All England champion in straight games, overcoming a 10-12 deficit. This ended the four-year wait to make it to the semi-finals but the job isn't done. Infact, it is far from it.
Standing up against them is France. Not a lot of people expected them to make it to the semi-finals, yet here they are, upsetting the odds and showing no regard for reputation.
Their biggest win came in their Group D encounter against 14-time champions Indonesia as they beat them 4-1. This was followed up with a 3-0 drubbing of 2014 champions Japan on Friday, to reach their maiden Thomas Cup semi-final and guarantee themselves a medal.
A win will see India reach the summit clash for the first time since their historic win in 2022 and they will be up against China or Denmark on Sunday, May 3.
INDIA VS FRANCE LINE-UP (World ranking in brackets)
- Ayush Shetty (18) vs Christo Popov (4) - 9:30 PM IST
- Alex Lanier (10) vs Kidambi Srikkanth (30) - Not before 10:30 PM IST
- Toma Jr. Popov (17) vs HS Prannoy (35) - Not before 11:10 PM IST
- Eloi Adam/Leo Rossi (52) vs Hariharan Amsakarunnan/M.R. Arjun (34) - Not before 12 am IST
- Christo/Toma Jr. Popov (21) vs Satwik-Chirag (4) - Not before 12:50 am IST
THOMAS CUP SEMI-FINAL: PREDICTION
The India vs France match is expected to be a true 50-50 battle on Saturday. The strength for the French side will be the depth they have in the singles department.
Christo Popov is ranked No.4 in the world and will lead the French challenge. He will have Alex Lanier for company and the World No.10 is expected to prove to be a stern test for the Indian shuttlers.
Toma Jr. Popov is the third big name, and his experience will be key. What France did against Japan was to ensure that the doubles contests weren't needed. But that may not be the case when it comes to Saturday
Lakshya, Ayush and Kiran George are familiar with the challenge from Popovs, having trained with them in the run-up to the Paris Olympics.
With the form that Ayush is in at the moment, the rankings don't really matter for them and nor do the big-name reputation. Popov has won the only match between the two but expect the Indian ace to challenge the World No.4.
With Lakshya not being a part of the lineup, it will be time for Srikkanth to step up for the game and secure the win. Same can be said about HS Prannoy, who will take Toma Jr. and look to get revenge on him for the loss he got during their 2025 All England Open clash.
If France gets pulled into the deep end of the doubles ties, then they will have the Popovs competing in the last tie. There, India will keep their trump cards, Satwik-Chirag ready. The Indian duo have beaten the Popov brothers twice during their previous encounters.
With the quarterfinals, semis and final being played on consecutive days, the only major concern seems to be fatigue and player recovery. If both sides are able to overcome this, then expect a battle for the ages.
"We believe that we can go all the way. It's always been like this. We have a solid team and everyone believes that we can do it," Ayush told PTI after the win.
India will be hoping that his words turn out to be gold and they can make the final one more time and challenge for the crown.
