India secured a dominant 5-0 victory over Australia in their men’s Group A tie at the Thomas & Uber Cup 2026 in Horsens, Denmark, on Monday, sealing a place in the quarterfinals with a match to spare.
Having opened their campaign with a 4-1 win against Canada, India needed another victory to confirm progression—and delivered in emphatic fashion. The only change to the lineup saw HS Prannoy replace Kidambi Srikanth, as the team maintained its strong momentum.
Lakshya Sen set the tone early, dispatching Ephraim Stephen Sam 21-14, 21-16 in the opening singles match. Rising star Ayush Shetty followed up with a commanding performance, overwhelming Shrey Dhand 21-8, 21-6 in just 26 minutes to double India’s lead.
The experienced doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then ensured there would be no way back for Australia, defeating Rizky Hidayat and Jack Yu 21-14, 21-16 to clinch the tie.
Prannoy justified his inclusion with a solid 21-11, 21-17 win over Rishi Honda Boopathy, while the doubles pair of Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun completed the clean sweep with a 21-12, 21-10 victory.
India will next face top seeds China, who also registered wins over Australia (5-0) and Canada (4-1), in a decisive clash to determine the Group A winners.
(With inputs from ANI)