Lakshya Sen recovers to beat Collins Valentine Filimon at World Championships in New Delhi
Lakshya Sen defeated Collins Valentine Filimon 16-21, 21-8, 21-4 in a men's singles opening-round match at the BWF World Championships in New Delhi on Tuesday, August 18, 2026. Sen lost the first game but adjusted his tactics to win the next two games.
Sen endured roughly fifteen minutes of disarray before reversing the momentum in what the report described as a 30-minute recovery, having entered the match as the 14th seed and 2021 bronze medallist. Filimon, ranked 128th, produced an unexpected challenge early on and the match was affected by conditions including a drift on court, prompting Sen and his team to change their original game plan. A vociferous home crowd and animated coaching from Yoo Yong-Sung were present throughout the match.
Filimon used his height to attack from the outset, pressing Sen to the back with overhead lobs, smashes and cross-court shots and gaining the early advantage. Sen appeared erratic in the first game, unable to control his volleys and angles and missing reachable shuttles, sometimes going too wide to the sidelines and at other times falling short. That pressure and Filimon’s aggression produced the 21-16 opening-game score in the Austrian’s favour.
Following instructions from coach Yoo Yong-Sung, Sen altered his style and tactics, took control of rallies and moved into an aggressive approach that flipped the match. The Indian dominated the second game 21-8 and extended that control into the decider, which he closed out 21-4 as Filimon’s earlier momentum dissipated. The turnaround paid off decisively after the first-game lapse.
The opening day produced mixed results for India beyond Sen’s win. Unnati Hooda won her maiden World Championships match, beating Thet Htar Thuzar of Myanmar 22-20, 21-16. Two of India’s three mixed doubles pairs were eliminated: Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Gadde lost to Canada’s Jonathan and Crystal Lai 20-22, 21-19, 21-17, while Ashith Surya and Amutha Pramuthesh — who had entered the main draw as reserves — went down 16-21, 30-29, 24-22 to Emre Sonmez and Yasemen Bektas of Turkey.
In women’s doubles, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, fresh from receiving the Arjuna Award, reached the pre-quarterfinals with a 21-15, 21-12 win over Lauren Lam and Allison Lee of the USA, while Kavipriya Selvam and Simran Singhi were beaten 21-7, 21-14 by Bulgaria’s Gabriela and Stefani Stoeva. Other notable results from the day included Jonatan Christie beating Matthias Kicklitz 21-15, 21-14, Loh Kean Yew defeating Brian Yang 21-14, 22-20, and Kenta Nishimoto overcoming Christo Popov 21-17, 21-19; in men’s doubles Aaron Chia and Wooi Yik Soh won 15-21, 21-11, 21-18.
The opening-round outcomes in New Delhi saw Sen and Unnati Hooda among the winners, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand progress to the pre-quarterfinals in women’s doubles, and two of India’s mixed doubles combinations exit the tournament.