HORSENS, Denmark, April 24 (Xinhua) -- The 2026 Thomas and Uber Cup Finals kicked off in Horsens on Friday, with defending champions China men's and women's teams both cruising to 5-0 victories in their opening group matches.
Top-seeded China men's team is drawn in Group A of the Thomas Cup alongside India, Canada and Australia. In their opener against Australia, the Chinese side delivered a composed performance throughout.
World No. 1 Shi Yuqi beat Ephraim Stephen Sam 21-14, 21-10 to give China an early lead. Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang needed just 22 minutes to defeat Rizky Hidayat and Jack Yu 21-11, 21-12 in the first doubles.
In the second singles, world No. 7 Li Shifeng was tested by world No. 246 Shrey Dhand but came through in three games, winning 21-15, 17-21, 21-16 after 69 minutes. Chen Boyang and Liu Yi then beat Andika Ramadiansyah and Frederick Zhao 21-8, 21-12, before Lu Guangzu sealed the sweep with a 21-7, 21-6 victory over Rishi Honda Boopathy.
"We have adapted quite well after the first match. The conditions are stable and the shuttle is a bit fast," Liang said.
"We will take it match by match, trust the team and focus on our own performance," Wang added.
In the Uber Cup, top-seeded China is grouped with India, Denmark and Ukraine.
In their opening tie against Ukraine, Chen Yufei, Han Yue and Xu Wenjing secured a 3-0 lead with straight-game wins in the singles. The doubles pairs Jia Yifan and Zhang Shuxian, and Li Yijing and Luo Xumin, followed up with dominant performances, as China wrapped up a 5-0 victory with all matches won in straight games.
"The venue has no drift, which makes it comfortable to play, but the shuttle is quite fast and I needed some time to adjust," said Chen. "It's a beautiful place, with a calm atmosphere that helps us stay focused." ■
