KUALA LUMPUR: Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen will face a strong challenge in his opening round at the Badminton World Championships as he runs into top seed Chinese Shi Yu Qi, as the draws for the marquee event, scheduled to be held in Paris between August 25 and 31, were announced on Wednesday.

Shi has won three BWF World Tour Super 1000 titles this season, making him a strong contender for his first World Championships gold medal. The 2021 bronze medallist Sen, who placed fourth at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games a year ago, could pose a stiff test for the top seed, given that he has a 1-3 head-to-head record against Shi, with their last match, at the Indonesia Open 2025 in June, going the distance.

At the bottom half of the men’s singles draw, a 2023 world championships bronze medallist, H S Prannoy, will begin his campaign against world No 49 Joakim Oldorff from Finland with a potential second-round clash against second seed Anders Antonsen of Denmark.

Former champion and two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, who is the sole Indian in the women’s section, will face world No 66 and two-time European junior champion Kaloyana Nalbantova of Bulgaria in her opening round match