New Delhi [India], July 24 (ANI): Every BWF World Championships has its share of unforgettable upsets. While the most important names usually dominate the headlines, historical past has proven that younger challengers can seize their second and remodel their careers in a single week. As New Delhi prepares to host the BWF World Championships from August 17-23, a brand new era of gamers will arrive keen to check themselves in opposition to the game’s largest stars.
According to a press launch from the BWF World Championships, listed here are 5 underdogs who’ve the expertise and type to spring a shock on the BWF World Championships India 2026.
1. Ayush Shetty (India) – Men’s Singles
India’s Ayush Shetty has loved a breakthrough 12 months and is shortly changing into one of many nation’s brightest males’s singles prospects. The 20-year-old from Karnataka received the US Open Super 300 title in 2025, his first BWF World Tour title, earlier than producing a fair greater assertion by reaching the ultimate of the 2026 Badminton Asia Championships. On that run, he defeated three top-10 gamers, together with Paris Olympics Silver Medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn, earlier than ending with the silver medal.
Ayush has loved a breakthrough season, however the BWF World Championships current a unique problem altogether. This will probably be his first look in a match the place each spherical options world-class opposition, making him one of many much less skilled contenders within the draw.
Ayush has already proven he’s able to beating the easiest. His peak provides him a robust attacking sport, whereas his confidence has grown after a sequence of huge wins this 12 months. Playing in entrance of dwelling followers in New Delhi might give him the additional push wanted to make a deep run.
2. Unnati Hooda (India) – Women’s Singles
At simply 18, India’s Unnati Hooda has already established herself as one of many nation’s brightest younger badminton skills. Over the previous 12 months, she has made speedy progress on the senior circuit, selecting up huge wins in opposition to skilled opponents and breaking into the BWF Women’s Singles Top 20, changing into solely the third Indian lady after Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu to realize the feat beneath the present rating system.
The girls’s singles draw on the World Championships is stacked with among the largest names in badminton, together with reigning world No. 1 An Se-young (South Korea), Chen Yufei (China), Akane Yamaguchi (Japan), PV Sindhu (India) and a number of other different established stars. While Unnati has proven immense promise, this will probably be her World Championships debut, and he or she remains to be constructing expertise on the highest stage. That makes her an outsider in comparison with the match favourites.
Unnati has already proved that she will beat top-quality opposition. At the 2025 China Open Super 1000, she shocked two-time Olympic medallist and former world champion PV Sindhu to turn out to be the youngest Indian lady to achieve the quarter-finals of a Super 1000 occasion.
She adopted that up on the 2026 Badminton Asia Championships, the place she defeated World No. 11 Supanida Katethong of Thailand in one of many largest upsets of the opening spherical. These performances have proven that she is able to dealing with strain and competing with among the world’s finest gamers. With dwelling help behind her and rising confidence from her latest outcomes, Unnati has the flexibility to place collectively one other sturdy run and emerge as one of many shock medallists in New Delhi.
3. Alwi Farhan (Indonesia) – Men’s Singles
Indonesia’s Alwi Farhan is without doubt one of the brightest younger skills in world badminton. The 20-year-old introduced himself by successful the 2023 BWF World Junior Championships, changing into solely the second Indonesian to say the boys’ singles title. Since then, he has made a powerful transition to the senior circuit, successful the 2025 Macau Open Super 300, his maiden BWF World Tour title, and enjoying a key position in Indonesia’s triumph on the 2025 Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships.
Despite his speedy rise, Alwi remains to be establishing himself on the senior circuit. Many of his rivals have years of expertise competing deep into main championships, making the Indonesian teenager one of many match’s rising challengers moderately than an outright favorite.
Alwi has already proven that he belongs on the most important stage. He remained unbeaten as Indonesia received its maiden Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships title in 2025 and later defeated World No. 3 Anders Antonsen in the course of the Sudirman Cup group stage.
Winning the Macau Open Super 300 later that 12 months additional proved that he can ship beneath strain over a whole match. With his aggressive model, fast motion and rising confidence in opposition to top-ranked opponents, Alwi has all of the elements to emerge as one of many shock medal contenders in New Delhi.
4. Tomoka Miyazaki (Japan) – Women’s Singles
Japan’s Tomoka Miyazaki has quickly emerged as one of many brightest younger skills in world badminton. The 19-year-old introduced herself on the worldwide stage by successful the 2022 BWF World Junior Championships, changing into solely the fourth Japanese participant to say the women’ singles title.
Since then, she has made a seamless transition to the senior circuit, successful the 2024 Orleans Masters Super 300 and the 2025 Taipei Open Super 300, whereas additionally ending runner-up on the 2024 China Open Super 1000 and capturing the 2024 All Japan National Championships. Her constant performances have propelled her into the world’s high 10, establishing her as one in all Japan’s main girls’s singles gamers.
Although she has already damaged into the world’s high 10, Miyazaki remains to be looking for her first World Championships medal. With a number of confirmed champions within the draw, the younger Japanese star must overcome among the sport’s largest names to achieve the rostrum.
Miyazaki has already proven that she will compete with the easiest. Her title-winning campaigns on the 2024 Orleans Masters Super 300 and the 2025 Taipei Open Super 300, alongside together with her runner-up end on the 2024 China Open Super 1000, proved that she will string collectively victories in opposition to elite opposition over a whole match.
Blessed with distinctive velocity, sharp anticipation and memorable consistency from the again courtroom, she thrives in lengthy rallies and infrequently provides away straightforward factors. With one other 12 months of expertise on the senior circuit and rising confidence from her latest outcomes, Miyazaki has all of the attributes to emerge as one of many shock medallists in New Delhi.
5. Kalyana Nalbantova (Bulgaria) – Women’s Singles
Bulgaria’s Kalyana Nalbantova has quickly emerged as one in all Europe’s brightest younger badminton skills. At simply 20 years outdated, she is a two-time European Junior champion, having received the title in 2022 and 2024.
She has additionally claimed 4 BWF International titles – the Hungarian International (2022), Bulgarian International (2023), Belgian International (2025) and Czech Open (2025). Nalbantova represented Bulgaria on the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, completed runner-up on the 2026 US Open Super 300, and was a part of the Bulgarian group that created historical past by successful the European Women’s Team Championships for the primary time, including one other milestone to her quickly rising profession.
She has additionally registered victories over a number of top-20 gamers and climbed to a career-high World No. 40, underlining her rise as one in all Europe’s main younger stars.
Despite her spectacular rise, Nalbantova is but to make a deep run on the BWF World Championships. Coming from a nation with restricted historical past of success at badminton’s largest particular person occasion, she is unlikely to obtain the identical consideration because the established stars from Asia. That permits her to reach in New Delhi with comparatively little strain, making her a real darkish horse able to stunning the sphere.
Nalbantova has constantly proven she will compete with the world’s finest. Winning back-to-back European Junior titles, reaching the ultimate of the 2026 US Open Super 300, defeating a number of top-20 opponents and serving to Bulgaria obtain its first-ever European Women’s Team Championships title replicate each her high quality and composure on the massive stage.
At simply 20 years of age and already a career-high World No. 40, she is broadly thought to be one in all Europe’s brightest girls’s singles prospects and among the many gamers anticipated to hold the continent’s legacy within the post-Carolina Marin period. If she carries that momentum into New Delhi and capitalises on a beneficial draw, Nalbantova has each likelihood of rising as one of many shock medallists of the match.
Every BWF World Championships produces a couple of shock performers. Ayush Shetty, Unnati Hooda, Alwi Farhan, Tomoka Miyazaki and Kalyana Nalbantova could not start the week among the many favourites, however every has already demonstrated the expertise and temperament to problem the game’s largest names.
In a match the place one impressed week can redefine a profession, these are the gamers who might emerge because the breakout stars in New Delhi. (ANI)