Loh Kean Yew notches opening match win at Asian Games against India’s Lakshya Sen

NAGOYA – National badminton player Loh Kean Yew kick-started his 2026 Asian Games campaign with a 21-12, 15-21, 21-14 win over India’s Lakshya Sen on Sept 26.

With his round-of-32 victory over 14th-ranked Sen at the Ichinoyami City Municipal Gymnasium, world No. 13 Loh improved his head-to-head record against the Indian to 5-7.

He will be back in action later in the day in the round-of-16.

In his second Asiad appearance, the Singaporean is aiming for a breakthrough as he seeks his first medal at the continental showpiece.

At the previous edition of the Asian Games in Hangzhou three years ago, he was eliminated in the second round after losing his opening match to Malaysia’s Ng Tze Yong.

The last and only time a Singaporean stood on the podium at the quadrennial Games was in 2006, when the women’s team won a bronze.

In Japan, the Republic is also represented by world No. 45 women’s singles player Yeo Jia Min and men’s doubles pair Junsuke Kubo and Wesley Koh, who are ranked 42nd.

Yeo will come up against the 188th-ranked Fathimath Nabaaha Abdul Razzaq from the Maldives in her opening match, while Kubo and Koh face South Korea’s world No. 14 duo Ki Dong-ju and Kang Min-hyuk in the last 16.

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