Thomas Cup Preview: Indonesia, Chinese Taipei Hold the Aces

Thomas Cup Preview: Indonesia, Chinese Taipei Hold the Aces

At the last edition of the Thomas Cup, Chinese Taipei made history by medalling for the first time. This time they have the strength to go one step further and stake a claim for the title at the BWF Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2026.

In both singles and doubles, Chinese Taipei look solid. Chou Tien Chen is dependable as always and Lin Chun-yi finding form with titles at the India Open and All England could not have been more welcome for his team. For the third singles they have Chi Yu Jen – semifinalist at the German Open – or the talented Lee Chia Hao – whose form however has plummeted in recent months.

In doubles Chinese Taipei have rich choice, with Chiu Hsiang Chieh/Wang Chi-Lin and Lee Jhe-Huei/Yang Po-Hsuan heading the challenge.

Chinese Taipei are grouped with powers Denmark and Korea, besides Sweden in Group C. Chinese Taipei and Denmark are favourites to go through, for the third contenders Korea, while packed with strength in doubles, are vulnerable in all their three singles.

Denmark are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their Thomas Cup win. And while the current Danish team is now in the post-Viktor Axelsen era and look comparatively lean in personnel, they do have matchwinners in Anders Antonsen, Rasmus Gemke, Kim Astrup/Anders Skaarup Rasmussen and Daniel Lundgaard/Mads Vestergaard, with the choice of fielding Rasmus Kjaer and Mathias Christiansen.

Rich Choice for Indonesia

Indonesia’s depth will be the envy of many. In singles they have the experience of Jonatan Christie and Anthony Ginting, to go with the youthfulness of Alwi Farhan and Moh Zaki Ubaidillah, who while relatively new entrants on the World Tour, have already made an impact. In doubles the Indonesians can rely on Fajar Alfian, Muhammad Shohibul Fikri, Sabar Karyaman Gutama and Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani besides young guns Raymond Indra/Nikolaus Joaquin. Both Alwi and Ubaidilliah have shown maturity beyond their youthful years, and Indonesia have the additional advantage of choosing to field the experienced Ginting for the do-or-die fifth match.

Indonesia are in an interesting group, with France, Thailand and Algeria. The French men’s team has come of age and it will be no surprise if they finish in the last four, for such have been their recent exploits in men’s singles, and occasionally in doubles. In singles Alex Lanier and Popov brothers Christo and Toma Junior give them a solid look, while in doubles the Popov brothers will be seconded by Eloi Adam/Leo Rossi and German Open runners-up Julien Maio/William Villeger.

Thailand, on paper, will be hard pressed to upstage Indonesia and France. Kunlavut Vitidsarn is their spearhead, and Panitchaphon Teeraratsakul does have impressive results this season. Although they don’t have any doubles pairs within the top 25, with personnel like Dechapol Puavaranukroh, Pakkapon Teeraratsakull, Peeratchai Sukphun and Ruttanapak Oupthong, the Thais could be a handful.

Missing Aura

China head in as defending champions, but the team – on paper, at any rate – doesn’t have the intimidating profile of their past champion teams. While the redoubtable Shi Yu Qi can provide the lead first up, none of the others have been in exceptional form. Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang won a sole title (India Open) but have been otherwise inconsistent this season; likewise Chen Bo Yang/Liu Yi.

Still, if there is one thing several of their opponents over the years have realised the hard way, it’s that the Chinese team can never be counted out.

The two powers in Group A are China and India, with Canada looking to challenge India for the second spot.

India have several players who won for them the Thomas Cup in 2022. The Indians will be buoyed by the form of their new star Ayush Shetty, and with Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy, their singles does appear solid – even if Srikanth and Prannoy haven’t had particularly noteworthy performances on the World Tour in recent months. Of greater concern to India will be their doubles, for Satwiksairaj Rankireddy has struggled to overcome his shoulder injury.

Canada, with Victor Lai as spearhead, will look to exploit this chink; the Canadians do have a balanced side (Lai, Brian Yang, Joshua Nguyen in singles and Kevin Lee/Ty Alexander Lindeman and Jonatan Bing Lai/Nyl Yakura in doubles). The India-Canada tie could be one of the closest ones of the group stage.

Japan and Malaysia are the strong powers in Group B. Japan, champions in 2014, have a strong team, particularly in singles with Swiss Open winner Yushi Tanaka and Koki Watanabe backing Kodai Naraoka. Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi lead the doubles, significantly, while India Open runners-up Hiroki Midorikawa/Kyohei Yamashita are not in the lineup, leaving the second doubles in the hands of Kakeru Kumagai/Hiroki Nishi.

Malaysia have the opposite problem, with exceptional strength in doubles, but with many questions in singles. Lee Zii Jia’s fitness levels being uncertain, and with the other singles not making much of an impression, Malaysia will have their fingers crossed.

Also Read:

Uber Cup Preview: China Favourites, but Surprises Likely

Indonesia Face Test from France, Thailand