Kidambi Srikanth produced one of the standout results at the China Masters 2026, defeating Canada’s world No. 9 Victor Lai in straight games to book his place in the men’s singles quarterfinals in Shenzhen. The experienced Indian, who has shown promising form this season after reaching the US Open Super 300 final, held his nerve to complete the upset against the recently crowned World Championships bronze medallist.
Elsewhere, it was a disappointing day for India’s other contenders. Tanvi Sharma’s campaign ended in the women’s singles Round of 16 after a closely fought contest against Japan’s world No. 9 Tomoka Miyazaki, while the mixed doubles pairing of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also bowed out after losing to Chinese Taipei’s Liu Kuang Heng and Hsu Yin-Hui.
Kidambi Srikanth Stuns World No. 9 Victor Lai at China Masters
Kidambi Srikanth produced a composed comeback to upset world No. 9 Victor Lai 21-18, 21-19 and reach the China Masters Super 750 quarterfinals in Shenzhen. The former world No. 1 initially trailed after a 3-3 start, falling 3-7 before fighting back to level at 8-8 as Lai began making unforced errors. The Canadian regained control and led 11-9 at the interval before stretching his advantage to 15-11, but Srikanth refused to let the game slip away.
The Indian veteran changed the momentum with a well-placed shot to the backline, followed by a powerful jump smash and clever play at the net to bring the scores level at 15-15. Srikanth continued to attack, using his jump smashes effectively as he moved ahead 18-16 before creating three game points. He converted the second opportunity after Lai found the net again to take the opening game 21-18.
Srikanth once again had to recover from behind in the second game after slipping to 5-9 and later trailing 9-14. Two attacking smashes, combined with errors from Lai, brought him within one point at 13-14, and Srikanth kept pressing at the Canadian’s feet to level the contest at 18-18. Lai then went long, allowing Srikanth to earn match points, and another error from the Canadian handed the Indian a 21-19 victory. Srikanth, a 2021 World Championships silver medallist, will next face Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk Yiu in the quarterfinals.
Tanvi Sharma, Dhruv Kapila-Tanisha Crasto Bow Out of China Masters
Tanvi Sharma’s China Masters campaign came to an end in the Round of 16 after the Indian teenager went down 17-21, 21-18, 16-21 to Japan’s world No. 9 Tomoka Miyazaki in a 66-minute battle. Tanvi, who recently won the Taipei Open Super 300 title, had entered the last 16 with a convincing 21-16, 21-17 victory over Denmark’s Amalie Schulz. Against Miyazaki, however, she struggled to maintain her momentum when it mattered most.
The opening game was closely contested, but Miyazaki managed to stay slightly ahead before pulling away in the closing stages to take it 21-17. Tanvi responded strongly in the second, building an 8-2 advantage before the Japanese shuttler fought back to level at 10-10. The Indian held her composure and regained control, moving ahead 18-14 before sealing the game 21-18 to force a decider.
The deciding game remained tight early on, with Tanvi holding an 11-9 lead at the interval. Miyazaki, though, returned with a strong push after the change of ends, quickly drawing level at 11-11 and taking charge of the contest. Tanvi managed only five more points as the Japanese shuttler pulled away to win the decider 21-16. The result also extended Miyazaki’s head-to-head advantage, having beaten Tanvi in three games at the Indonesia Masters earlier this year. India’s mixed doubles pair Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto also exited after an 18-21, 18-21 defeat to Chinese Taipei’s Liu Kuang Heng and Hsu Yin Hui.
