Tanvi Patri Leads India Squad for BWF World Junior Championships

Asian U-17 champion Tanvi Patri will lead India’s 18-member squad at the BWF World Junior Championships 2026 in Cairo, Egypt, with the team set to compete from October 5 to 10.

Silver medallist Shaina Manimuthu and India Junior International GP winner Dev Ruparelia are also among the key names selected for the event. India enter the championships after winning bronze in the previous edition and will begin their mixed-team campaign as the fifth seeds.

The squad was finalised after selection trials at the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati from September 18 to 21. The process was conducted in line with the guidelines of the Badminton Association of India’s Junior Selection Committee.

India’s route and revised tournament format

India have been placed in Group D1 alongside Peru and Brazil. To reach the quarter-finals, the Indian team must finish on top of the group and then win a play-off against the winner of Group D2.

Group D2 includes ninth seeds Indonesia, Macau China and Senegal, making the play-off a crucial step in India’s route through the mixed-team competition.

Badminton Association of India secretary general Sanjay Mishra said the junior side has the opportunity to produce another strong showing. He pointed to the team’s momentum from the U17 Asian Championships, where India reached the final.

Mishra also said the federation waited for the medal-winning players from that competition to return before completing the selection trials, with the aim of ensuring all eligible players had a fair opportunity in the process.

The 2026 edition will also introduce revised scoring formats following a BWF Council decision. The Suhandinata Cup, the mixed-team event at the World Junior Championships, will be played using a new 3×55 relay scoring system.

The individual events for the Eye Level Cups will follow from October 11 to 17 and will be conducted under a 3×15 scoring system. The distinction gives India’s selected players two separate competition phases to prepare for in Cairo.

Full India squad for Cairo

India’s listed singles players are Nishchal Chand, Dev Ruparelia, Jagsher Singh Khangurra and Akhil Reddy Bobba in the boys’ group, alongside Parul Choudhary, Tanvi Reddy Andluri, Shaina Manimuthu and Tanvi Patri in the girls’ group.

The men’s doubles combinations named are Aathish Sreenivas PV and Yogansh Singh, plus Pavan Suresh and Punith Suresh. The women’s doubles entries are Aanya Bisht and Angel Punera, along with Diya Bheemaiah B and Baruni Parshwal.

For mixed doubles, the squad includes Divyansh Agrawal with Varna Prabhuanand and Yogansh Singh with Aanya Bisht. The selected group will attend a dedicated World Junior Camp at the National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati from September 25 to October 2 before travelling for the championships.

With a medal from the last edition providing recent reference and a group-stage path already defined, India’s immediate objective in Cairo will be to secure first place in Group D1 and earn the opportunity to contest the quarter-final play-off.