Singapore badminton player Loh Kean Yew has advanced to the men’s singles round of 16 at the 2026 Asian Games after beating India’s Lakshya Sen on Saturday (26 September).
The world No. 13 defeated Sen, who is ranked world No. 14, 21-12, 15-21, 21-14 at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium in Japan.
The match lasted 65 minutes, with both players receiving byes in the previous round.
Loh Secures First Asian Games Singles Win
The victory marked Loh’s first men’s singles win at the Asian Games in two appearances.
At the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, Loh was knocked out at the same stage of the competition.
The 2021 world champion had entered the 2026 Games as one of Singapore’s key badminton hopes after continuing to compete among the world’s top-ranked players.
Against Sen, Loh started strongly by taking the first game 21-12. However, the Indian shuttler responded by winning the second game 21-15 to force a deciding game.
Loh eventually pulled away in the third game to seal the win 21-14.
Loh To Face Malaysia’s Justin Hoh Next
Loh was scheduled to play Malaysia’s Justin Hoh later on Saturday (26 September) in the round of 16.
Meanwhile, Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min also progressed in the women’s singles competition.
Yeo defeated Maldives’ Fathimath Abdul Razzaq 21-9, 21-13 and was set to face Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon in the next round.
The 2026 Asian Games badminton competition is being held in Ichinomiya City, Japan, with Singapore fielding players across several events.
