HORSENS (Denmark), May 2 — France has created history storming into its maiden Thomas Cup semi-finals, stunning 2014 champions Japan with a commanding 3-0 victory in the quarter-finals of the 2026 edition at Forum Horsens here.

First singles and world No. 4 Christo Popov gave France a fine start, outlasting world No. 9 Kodai Naraoka 21-17, 21-17 in a 67-minute battle.

Alex Lanier, the 2025 European champion, then put France firmly in control with a confident 21-15, 21-17 victory over world No. 19 Yushi Tanaka.

With history within reach, world No. 17 Toma Junior Popov rose to the occasion by edging world No. 20 Koki Watanabe 21-19, 23-21, securing at least a medal in the prestigious badminton team tournament.

The win continues France’s dream run in Horsens, having already stunned 14-time champions Indonesia 4-1 in Group D on Tuesday.

The result marked the Indonesians’ first-ever group stage exit in the Thomas Cup.

France, dubbed as the dark horse of the tournament, will now take on 2022 champions India in tomorrow’s semi-finals after they cruised past Taiwan 3-0 earlier today.

In the meantime, the hosts Denmark advanced to the last four following a 3-1 win over Thailand.

Denmark will face defending champions, China, who eliminated five-time champions Malaysia, 3-0, in the other last eight tie.

The Thomas Cup Finals 2026, which began on April 24, runs until Sunday. — Bernama

HORSENS (Denmark), May 2 — National doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky has conceded that Malaysia’s men’s badminton team showed an inconsistent form compared to the group stage, before falling 0-3 to defending champions China in the Thomas Cup quarter-finals here yesterday.

Rexy said the national team hit its stride early in Group B, but bad luck struck, forcing the players to finish as runners-up after a 2-3 loss to 2014 champions Japan on Wednesday.

“We should have topped the group, but even if we had, it wouldn’t mean an easy ride in the quarter-finals.

“But we must figure out why our quarter-final showing was worlds apart from the group stage,” he said in a video posted by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM).

The defeat leaves Malaysia still waiting 32 years for a Thomas Cup triumph, as the country’s last came at the 1992 edition in Kuala Lumpur.

Rexy said he will review Malaysia’s Thomas Cup performance back from Horsens, plotting strategies to sustain form into knockouts, especially for the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games in Japan from Sept 19 to October 4.

“We need to step it up. Two years until the next Thomas Cup, but we can’t afford this at the Asian Games, with team and individual events on the line,” he said.

Meanwhile, the doubles specialist admitted that Malaysia had to yield to China’s superiority, the 11-time Thomas Cup champions, in yesterday’s quarter-final.

Malaysia men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao in action against world number one Shi Yu Qi of China during their quarter-final match at the BWF Thomas and Uber Cup Finals 2026 at Forum Horsens May 1, 2026. — Bernama pic

He also praised singles star Leong Jun Hao’s fight despite falling to world number one Shi Yu Qi (10-21, 21-16, 9-21), and credited world fifth-ranked doubles pair Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang’s dominance over Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (24-22, 21-14) in match two.

China sealed their semi-final spot when world number seven Li Shi Feng beat Malaysia’s second singles player Justin Hoh 21-14, 21-13.

The result also means Malaysia’s 24-year wait for a Thomas Cup win over China goes on.

Malaysia’s last Thomas Cup win over China was in the 2002 semi-finals, a 3-2 victory against the hosts in Guangzhou.

Malaysia began their Group B campaign with a narrow 3-2 win over England, followed by a 4-1 victory against Finland, before falling to 2014 champions Japan.

The 2026 Thomas Cup, which began on April 24, ends tomorrow. — Bernama

HORSENS (Denmark), May 2 — Malaysia’s disappointing exit from the Thomas Cup Finals 2026 has prompted a blunt admission from national singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen.

Jonassen said he takes full responsibility for the team’s shortcomings, describing their overall performance as ‘simply not good enough’, after bowing out in the quarterfinals against defending champions China, 0-3, in Forum Horsens, here, yesterday.

“Obviously, for the full campaign, I’m very disappointed that our lack of performance because we came in with too many flaws in our game. For that, of course, I take full responsibility. It’s simply not good enough. So, that is the frustration part right now,” he said in a post-match interview.

Rather than isolating the loss to China, the Dane pointed to a week-long struggle, particularly within the men’s singles camp, where the inability to build confidence proved costly.

In a major championship, Jonassen said players are expected to grow stronger with each outing, but Malaysia were unable to establish that consistency at any stage of the campaign.

“I’m not frustrated over the performance today but I think it’s the performance throughout the week that has let us down,” he said.

Malaysia men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia in action against Koki Watanabe of Japan in their Group B match of the BWF Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2026 at Forum Horsens April 29. 2026. Zii Jia won 21-13, 21-19. — Bernama pic

In the meantime, the 51-year-old said he would love to have professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia perform in the decider but to no avail as Malaysia’s campaign ended early in the third game against China.

World No. 82 and professional men’s singles shuttler Lee Zii Jia emerged as Malaysia’s most consistent men’s singles performer in the tournament, registering three wins from three matches, including an upset victory over world No. 20 Koki Watanabe, 21-13, 21-19, in the final Group B tie on Wednesday.

Malaysia men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao in action against world number one Shi Yu Qi of China during their quarter-final match at the BWF Thomas and Uber Cup Finals 2026 at Forum Horsens May 1, 2026. — Bernama pic

In contrast, national No. 1 Leong Jun Hao endured a difficult campaign, failing to deliver a point in all three matches he featured in, including a defeat to world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi in the opening tie against China, 10-21, 21-16, 9-21.

Second men’s singles Justin Hoh, on the other hand, who played four times here, only managed to win once throughout the tournament against Finnish player Kalle Koljonen, 21-14, 21-12 in their second Group B match.

Pofessional player Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin failed to make an impact as he went down to Cholan Kayan, 16-21, 15-21 during the Group B opener against England.

Jonassen also raised alarm that Malaysia’s current approach in men’s singles is falling behind the demands of the modern game.

“I’m not going to go directly into details about the players as such, but I do agree in a quite significant way from singles, the style of play that is simply not up to par or up to date on how the game has moved on,” he said.

He said that progress will require both technical and mental shifts, including greater patience and tactical awareness on court while urging players to take ownership of their growth.

Malaysia began their Group B campaign with a narrow 3-2 win over England, followed by a 4-1 victory against Finland before falling 2-3 to 2014 champions Japan.

The 2026 Thomas Cup, which began on April 24, runs until Sunday (May 3). — Bernama

HORSENS (Denmark), May 2 — National men’s singles player Justin Hoh has apologised to all Malaysians after the national men’s badminton squad was eliminated 0-3 in the 2026 Thomas Cup quarterfinals by defending champions China at the Forum Horsens here yesterday.

Justin, who played as the second singles, said his teammates had done their best to ensure Malaysia did not return empty-handed from this prestigious world team tournament.

“I apologise to all Malaysians for not being able to bring a medal home. As a team, we gave everything. No matter the result, we tried our best because we know China is a strong team, and I hope Malaysians understand. We will fight again in the next edition,” he told Bernama.

The world No. 44 ranked player said this after losing 14-21, 13-21 to world No. 7 Li Shi Feng, which saw China advance to the semifinals with a 3-0 victory over Malaysia.

World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi put China in front by overcoming the resistance of Malaysia’s top men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao, winning 21-10, 16-21, 21-9 in a 67-minute battle.

The 11-time champions doubled their lead when world No. 5 pair Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang defeated Malaysia’s top hopes and world No. 2 pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, 24-22, 21-14, before Shi Feng emerged as the hero to secure his team’s advancement.

Justin acknowledged that there is still a noticeable gap between him and other top world players following his experience at the 2026 Thomas Cup. “I gained a lot of experience playing against top players. However, I will continue to learn, train, and come back stronger,” he said.

Meanwhile, Soh Wooi Yik admitted that they made several simple mistakes at crucial moments against Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang, noting that their opponents were also more dominant in the second set.

Despite the loss to Yu Qi, Leong Jun Hao — who has been struggling with form recently — remained positive after successfully forcing the Chinese champion into a deciding set.

This result means that Malaysia, who finished as Group B runners-up, failed to end their 24-year wait for a victory over China in this tournament. Malaysia’s last victory against China was recorded in the 2002 semifinals when China hosted the prestigious tournament in Guangzhou, with a score of 3-2.

China will face the winner of the other quarterfinal match between hosts Denmark and Thailand in the semifinals tomorrow.

Malaysia began their Group B campaign with a narrow 3-2 victory over England, followed by a 4-1 win against Finland, before losing 2-3 to the 2014 edition champions, Japan. The 2026 Thomas Cup, which kicked off on April 24, continues until Sunday. — Bernama

HORSENS (Denmark), May 1 — The Great Wall of China proved too strong to breach.

Malaysia’s bid to end 34-year drought of lifting the Thomas Cup during the 2026 edition came to a halt following a 0-3 defeat to the defending champions in the quarter-finals at Forum Horsens here today.

After sitting out China’s two Group A matches, world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi returned in style, overcoming Malaysia’s top men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao 21-10, 16-21, 21-9 in a 67-minute match, to set the 11-time champions on the road to victory.

Malaysia looked to their trusted pair and world No. 2, Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik to turn the tide around, and for a moment, it seemed possible.

The 2022 men’s doubles world champions pushed world No. 5 duo Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang to the brink in a tense opening set, only to see it slip 22-24.

From there, the momentum swung decisively, and the Malaysians fell 14-21 in 35 minutes, which marked their 10th defeat in 13 meetings against the Chinese pair.

With China, Group A champions, in cruise control, national second singles Justin Hoh was unable to force a comeback, as he found world No. 7 Li Shi Feng a tough nut to crack, with the latter sealing the tie 21-14, 21-13 in 44-minutes and thus booked their place in the last four.

The result also meant Malaysia, who finished as Group B runners-up, were unable to end their 24-year long wait for another win over China in the competition.

Their last victory, a 3-2 achievement, came in the 2002 edition semi-finals when China hosted the prestigious badminton team tournament in Guangzhou.

China will take on the winner of the other quarter-final tie between hosts Denmark and Thailand, scheduled to be held later today, in the last four tomorrow.

Malaysia began their Group B campaign with a narrow 3-2 win over England, followed by a 4-1 victory against Finland before falling 2-3 to Japan.

The 2026 Thomas Cup, which began on April 24, runs until May 3. — Bernama