Tanisha Crasto, Dhruv Kapila March Into World Championships Pre-Quarterfinals

India’s Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila advanced to the mixed doubles pre-quarterfinals at the BWF World Championships 2026 with a commanding straight-games victory on Wednesday.

The 15th-seeded Indian pair, who received a first-round bye, began their campaign in the Round of 32 against Macau’s Leong Iok Chon and Ng Weng Chi. They dominated the contest to win 21-11, 21-11 and book their place in the Round of 16.

Crasto and Kapila have therefore played only one match so far at the championships and made an impressive start. They will now face China’s sixth-seeded Guo Xinwa and Chen Fanghui in the pre-quarterfinals today, with another victory taking them into the quarter-finals.

The Indian pair need to win three more matches after today to lift the title the pre-quarterfinal, quarter-final, semi-final and final remain on their potential route to the championship. The tournament is being held in New Delhi from August 17 to 23.

India has also enjoyed several encouraging results. Lakshya Sen fought back to defeat Austria’s Collins Valentine Filimon 16-21, 21-8, 21-4, while Unnati Hooda beat Myanmar’s Thet Htar Thuzar 22-20, 21-16.

In women’s doubles, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand reached the Round of 16 with a 21-15, 21-12 victory over Lauren Lam and Allison Lee of the USA. However, Kavipriya Selvam-Simran Singhi were eliminated by Bulgaria’s Stoeva sisters.

India’s other mixed doubles pairs, Ashith Surya-Amrutha Pramuthesh and Ruthvika Gadde-Rohan Kapoor, also bowed out.