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2026 Asian Badminton Championships
Kickoff Time: 2026-4–7–4-12 (HKT)
Source:REUTERS/Pedro Nunes
The 2026 Thailand Masters Badminton Championships will officially kick off at the Ningbo Olympic Sports Center in Zhejiang, China, from April 7 to 12. As a top-tier BWF World Tour Super 1000 event and the highest-level badminton tournament in China in the first half of the year, the Asian Championships is not only critical for Olympic qualifying points and Asian rankings, but also a key fixture for powerhouse teams to test their squads and refine tactics ahead of the Thomas & Uber Cup Finals. With badminton powerhouses including China, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, and Indonesia all competing in Asia, the Asian Championships has even been described as “harder to win than an Olympic gold medal”.
In the men’s singles event, Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand, currently ranked world No.1, is the top seed and heads the upper half of the draw. He will face Angus Ng Ka Long from Hong Kong, China, in the first round. In the recent All England Open, Kunlavut was eliminated in the semi-finals after losing 1–2 to Lin Chun Yi. Interestingly, Lin Chun Yi, seeded sixth, has also been drawn in the upper half, setting up a potential rematch with Kunlavut in the quarter-finals. The clash between the defending champion and the newly crowned All England Open winner is undoubtedly one of the biggest highlights of the upper half. Additionally, the upper half features top players such as third seed Jonatan Christie and fifth seed Li Shifeng, making its level of competition extremely fierce.
In the lower half, second seed and China’s top men’s singles player Shi Yuqi will take on Chia Hao Lee from Chinese Taipei in the first round. Shi Yuqi has been inconsistent in form this year; he suffered a first-round exit at the All England Open, which dropped his world ranking to second place. Notably, at the end of March, the Chinese Badminton Association officially announced that Olympic gold medalist and Grand Slam winner Chen Long has joined the coaching staff. Under Chen Long’s guidance, Shi Yuqi has focused on strengthening his overhead straight smashes, net play transitions, and physical stamina management to adapt to the pace of top-level competition. However, the lower half also includes strong contenders such as fourth seed Chou Tien Chen, seventh seed Kodai Naraoka, and eighth seed Loh Kean Yew, leaving plenty of uncertainty over whether Shi Yuqi can regain his form and fight his way through.
With defending champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn, new All England Open winner Lin Chun Yi, and home-favourite China’s top player Shi Yuqi all in the fray, this year’s Asian Championships has generated huge excitement. A spectacular showdown representing the highest level of badminton in Asia is about to begin. Let us look forward to the brilliant performances from all the elite players!