Lakshya Sen in All England Semi-Final: Match Time, Opponent & How to Watch Live
BIRMINGHAM, March 7, 2026 â Lakshya Sen is two wins away from making Indian badminton history, and right now, nobody in Birmingham has given him reason to doubt himself.
The 24-year-old from Almora walked into the Yonex All England Open 2026 as the 12th seed â and proceeded to knock out the World No. 1, the World No. 7, and the World No. 6 in succession. [web:167] Today, in the semi-finals at the Utilita Arena Birmingham, he faces Canada's Victor Lai for a spot in Sunday's final. If he gets there and wins, he would become only the third Indian ever to lift the All England title â joining the legendary Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001). [web:168]
No pressure.
The Road That Brought Him Here
Lakshya's run through this tournament has been the story of the All England so far â a sequence of wins that shouldn't have been this clean, against opposition that was supposed to stop him.
Round of 32: He met World No. 1 Shi Yuqi â the defending champion â in the very first round. Three games. 23-21, 19-21, 21-17. Lakshya had never beaten the Chinese ace before. He picked the biggest possible stage to do it for the first time. [web:167]
Round of 16: Hong Kong's Ng Ka Long Angus pushed him to three games again â 21-19, 21-23, 21-10. The third game wasn't close once Lakshya found his range. [web:164]
Quarterfinal: Li Shifeng â the World No. 6 and the exact player who ended Lakshya's 2025 All England campaign at the same stage â was next. This time, there was no repeat of last year's exit. Lakshya dismantled him in straight games: 21-13, 21-16. About an hour on court. Comfortable, controlled, confident. [web:169]
Three matches. Three wins. Two of them against top-10 players. This is not luck â this is form.
The Opponent: Who Is Victor Lai?
Victor Lai is ranked World No. 16, representing Canada â and he has had his own quietly impressive run to the semi-finals. [web:169]
His path here:
- Round of 32: Beat Alex Lanier 21-12, 21-23, 23-21 â a tight three-game battle that showed he doesn't crack under pressure [web:164]
- Round of 16: Dominated Lee Cheuk Yiu 21-12, 21-18 â a comfortable win against a quality Hong Kong player [web:164]
- Quarterfinal: Beat Japan's Koki Watanabe 18-21, 21-17, 21-15 â came from behind to win the deciding game convincingly [web:164]
Lai is a Canadian of Malaysian origin, technically precise, composed, and dangerous when he gets his attacking game going. He doesn't have the star power of the players Lakshya has already beaten â but a semi-final is a semi-final, and the pressure of getting to a first-ever All England final could affect either player on a given day.
Critically, this is a new head-to-head. The two have not met on the BWF circuit before, which means there's no tactical database to lean on for either camp. Both coaches will be building a game plan from scratch based on recent match footage. [web:164]
Match Details & How to Watch
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Match | All England Open 2026 â Men's Singles Semi-Final |
| Players | Lakshya Sen (IND) vs Victor Lai (CAN) |
| Venue | Utilita Arena Birmingham, England |
| Date | Saturday, March 7, 2026 |
| Session | Session 2 â 5:00 PM local (10:30 PM IST) [web:168] |
| Live Stream | BWF TV YouTube channel (free, subject to geo-restrictions) [web:174] |
| TV Broadcast India | No official TV broadcast in India for this tournament [web:174] |
For Indian fans, the BWF TV YouTube channel is the primary viewing option â the official BWF channel streams matches live when broadcast rights haven't been sold in your territory. Search for "BWF TV" on YouTube and check their live tab from 10:00 PM IST onwards on Saturday night. [web:174]
What Lakshya Needs to Do
The tactical read on this match is straightforward in outline and complicated in execution.
Control the pace early. Lai tends to build into matches. If Lakshya can be aggressive from the opening rallies â his trademark sharp cross-court returns and net dominance â he can put Lai on the back foot before the Canadian finds his rhythm. [web:175]
Serve variation. Both players are strong at receiving flat drives. Mixing up the serve â particularly targeting Lai's backhand in the rear court â creates uncertainty and forces him to play shots he hasn't settled into yet.
Don't go to three games if avoidable. Lakshya has already played three three-game matches this week. His legs are carrying more mileage than Lai's â Lai won his quarterfinal in three games but his round of 16 was relatively brisk. Physical freshness could be a marginal factor in a long rally battle at the end of the second or third game.
Why This Matters Beyond the Semi-Final
For Indian badminton fans old enough to remember Gopichand's 2001 title, this week in Birmingham has that same electric quality of improbability turning into possibility with every passing match.
Lakshya has been here before â he was the runner-up at the 2022 All England, losing to Viktor Axelsen in the final. [web:167] He knows what the final feels like. He knows what he needs to fix to get over that last line.
This is his third semi-final at the tournament. [web:173] And the draw has â remarkably â opened up in a way that means the other semi-final, between Chou Tien Chen and Jonatan Christie, doesn't feature the kind of dominant favourite that Axelsen represented in 2022. [web:163]
An All England title for India has been waiting since 2001. Lakshya Sen is currently the closest any Indian has been to ending that wait.
Tune in at 10:30 PM IST tonight. It should be worth staying up for.