No Lakshya Sen as India face tricky France in semi-finals
Thomas Cup 2026: India's top-ranked badminton player Lakshya Sen is out of the semi-finals clash against France. This comes as a huge set-back for the Indian side who would have wanted Lakshya to play the first singles match against a tricky opponent.
Lakshya Sen has been ruled out of Thomas Cup semi-final. (Badminton Photo)
New Delhi,UPDATED: May 2, 2026 16:46 IST
India have suffered a huge setback ahead of their semi-final clash in the Thomas Cup 2026. The Indian team, who beat Chinese Taipei to reach the top four, will not have the services of their top singles player, Lakshya Sen.
India are taking on a tricky French side in the semi-final of the tournament. Lakshya Sen, who was at his very best against world No. 6 Chou Tien-chen in the quarter-finals, suffered an injury to his elbow during the match and has subsequently been ruled out of the semi-final of the tournament.
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WHAT HAPPENED TO LAKSHYA SEN?
Coach Vimal Kumar told India Today that Lakshya had suffered a swollen arm while attempting to save a point in the front court. The Indian shuttler was in a tough spot in the opening game of the match, where his desperate attempt to save the point had him land hard on the mat. The shuttle played one hour and 28 minutes with that impact injury, which naturally aggravated the issue.
The player also has blisters on his feet from the intense singles match on Friday.
"Lakshya is dealing with a swollen playing arm, particularly around the elbow, after his fall in yesterday’s match against Chou Tien-chen. He is also struggling with blisters on his feet. This is certainly a setback for India," Vimal Kumar told India Today.
Lakshya has blown hot and cold in this tournament so far but brought back his fighting spirit on Friday, May 1, when he eked out a terrific comeback win against Chou in the first singles match.
Badminton Association of India secretary Sanjay Mishra further revealed that Lakshya was being kept under close observation and is expected to return in the finals if India are able to beat France today.
INDIA vs FRANCE SEMI-FINAL: WHO REPLACES LAKSHYA?
In the absence of Lakshya Sen, young Ayush Shetty has been promoted to the first men's singles match against Christo Popov. Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy are going to play second and third men's singles respectively.
The last two matches will be played by the doubles pair of MR Arjun/Hariharan Amsakarunan and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty.
India's path to the semi-finals has been fairly brisk. India finished in the 2nd spot in their group stage behind China. They beat Chinese Taipei 3-0 in quarter-finals to reach the semis.
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