Lakshya Sen moved into the semifinals of the All England Open Badminton Championships 2026 after defeating world No. 6 Li Shi Feng of China 21-13, 21-16 in the quarterfinals on Friday. The match lasted exactly one hour at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham, and it settled a score from twelve months ago — Li Shi Feng had knocked Sen out at the same stage of last year’s tournament.
The result also marks Sen’s second win over a top-10 Chinese player in this year’s BWF Super 1000 event. He had already eliminated world No. 1 and defending champion Shi Yuqi in the opening round.
Match Summary
Game 1: Sen 21–13 Li Shi Feng
Sen made a fast start, moving to a 4-1 lead and extending it to 10-4 before the midgame interval, where he led 11-6. Li Shi Feng was tentative in his movement early on and struggled to match Sen’s aggression from the baseline.
After the break, Li Shi Feng found more purpose and narrowed the gap to 13-15 with a probing run of play. Sen responded by extending the lead to 18-13, aided by a net cord at a key moment, before closing out the game in 24 minutes.
Game 2: Sen 21–16 Li Shi Feng
The second game was more competitive from the outset. Both players moved to 6-6 early, and Li Shi Feng kept the pressure on throughout. He levelled at 9-9 after capitalising on a backline error from Sen, then closed the gap again to 12-13 midway through the game.
Sen responded each time.
A strong defensive stretch,which included repeated dives to keep long rallies alive, helped him move to 17-13. Li Shi Feng won a gruelling 45-shot rally to briefly stay in contention at 15-19, but Sen reached match point shortly after. Li Shi Feng pushed his final shot long, and Sen raised both fists to mark his passage into the last four.
Result at a Glance
| Match | Player | Game 1 | Game 2 | Result |
| QF — Men’s Singles | Lakshya Sen (IND) | 21 | 21 | Won |
| Li Shi Feng (CHN) | 13 | 16 | Lost | |
| Duration: 60 minutes |
Semifinal Draw
| Semifinal | Player 1 | Player 2 |
| Men’s Singles SF | Lakshya Sen (IND) | Victor Lai (CAN) |
Victor Lai of Canada set up the semifinal meeting with Sen by defeating Japan’s Koki Watanabe 18-21, 21-17, 21-15 in the other quarterfinal on Friday.
Sen’s Record at the All England Open
| Year | Stage Reached |
| 2022 | Final |
| 2024 | Semifinal |
| 2026 | Semifinal (in progress) |
This is Sen’s third semifinal appearance at the All England Open and his deepest run since reaching the final in 2022. Ranked 12th in the world, he is the only Indian player still in contention at this year’s tournament.
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Sen’s Head-to-Head vs Li Shi Feng
Friday’s win takes Sen’s record against Li Shi Feng to eight wins from 15 meetings. Li Shi Feng, the reigning Asian Games champion, had beaten Sen in the same round at last year’s All England Open.
India’s Campaign at All England Open 2026
| Player(s) | Event | Exit Round |
| Lakshya Sen | Men’s Singles | SF (in progress) |
| PV Sindhu | Women’s Singles | Withdrew (travel disruption) |
| Malvika Bansod | Women’s Singles | Round 1 |
| Unnati Hooda | Women’s Singles | Round 1 |
| Satwiksairaj Rankireddy / Chirag Shetty | Men’s Doubles | Round 1 |
| Tanisha Crasto / Dhruv Kapila | Mixed Doubles | Round 1 (retired) |
PV Sindhu was unable to travel to Birmingham after being stranded in transit in Dubai amid the ongoing security situation in the Middle East. Rankireddy and Shetty, India’s top men’s doubles pair, went out in the first round on Wednesday. The mixed doubles pair of Crasto and Kapila retired from their match on Thursday.
Sen’s Post-Match Comments
“Happy with the way I played both sets, and credit to him — he played a really solid game. There were some long rallies, both of us were getting tired, but I’m happy with the way I stuck in there,” Sen said after the match.
“My coach was saying just be extra prepared after long rallies because even he is tired, so just don’t give any easy mistakes. I’m happy with the way I’m moving on court, and now it’s time to recover so that I can move well tomorrow.”
The All England Open 2026 semifinal between Lakshya Sen and Victor Lai is scheduled for Saturday at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham. The prize fund for the BWF Super 1000 event stands at USD 1,450,000.
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