India’s women’s team bowed out of the Uber Cup 2026 after a heavy defeat to China in their final Group A tie on April 27. All eyes were on PV Sindhu at the start and her battle against Wang Zhiyi turned into a long, tense contest. The Indian shuttler looked in control at different stages, especially when she surged ahead in the deciding game, but couldn’t hold off a late charge from the Chinese player, who turned the match around at the closing stages. She ended up suffering 16-21, 21-19, 19-21.
That result immediately put India under pressure in what was already a must-win situation. China didn’t take long to build on that advantage. In the first doubles match, Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning kept things firmly in their grasp, beating Priya Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra without dropping a game.
The tie was effectively decided soon after. Isharani Baruah, up against Chen Yu Fei in the second singles, was unable to shift the momentum back, as China sealed the overall result with a third straight win. With the outcome no longer in doubt, the remaining matches played out without altering the bigger picture, though there were moments of resistance from the Indian side.
Tanisha Crasto and Kavipriya Selvam showed fight in their doubles match, pushing Zhang Shuxian and Luo Xumin to three games after recovering from a one-sided start. However, they fell short in the decider. Devika Sihag, too, managed to stretch her match against Xu Wenjing but couldn’t prevent another loss.
Notably, the defeat marked the end of India’s run in the tournament. Earlier, the team had shown some promise, bouncing back from a close defeat to Denmark with a convincing win over Ukraine. However, against China, they found themselves up against a side that capitalised on every opening.
Men’s team to play China on Wednesday
On the same day, India’s men had a far more positive outing, registering a 5-0 win over Australia in the Thomas Cup. India will next face top seeds China on Wednesday to decide the group winners.
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