India’s top-ranked men’s singles shuttler Lakshya Sen advanced to the semifinals of the All England Open 2026 after defeating sixth seed and former champion Li Shi Feng in straight games on Friday.
Sen, the 2022 finalist at the tournament, secured a 21-13, 21-16 victory in exactly one hour to book a place in the last four. He will now face Canada’s Victor Lai, who defeated Japan’s Koki Watanabe 18-21, 21-17, 21-15 in another quarterfinal match.
The 24-year-old Indian is the only player from the country still competing in the tournament. He began his campaign with an upset win over top seed and defending champion Shi Yu Qi and followed it up with a victory against Hong Kong’s Ng Ka Long Angus in the second round.
Heading into the quarterfinal clash, Sen and Li were evenly matched with a head-to-head record of 7-7.
Sen started strongly in the opening game, racing to a 10-4 lead with an aggressive approach. Li narrowed the gap to 15-13, but Sen responded with six consecutive points to close out the game.
The second game was more closely contested. Li started well and held a narrow one-point lead at the mid-game interval. However, Sen regained control by winning four straight points from 14-13 to move ahead and maintained the advantage to secure the match.
Speaking after the match, Sen said he focused on avoiding mistakes during long rallies as both players were tiring.
“There were a lot of long rallies, and I was getting tired. But the coach told me that he is also getting tired, and I just ensured that I didn’t make mistakes,” he said.
Sen said his immediate focus would be on recovering ahead of the semifinal and approaching the next match without looking too far ahead.
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