A late rescue act by Lee Zii Jia helped Malaysia avoid an upset against England, while Japan and Chinese Taipei cruised through their ties with commanding results on Day 2 of the BWF Thomas Cup Finals 2026 in Horsens.
The Malaysia-England duel in Group B saw the former survive a major scare before edging through 3–2 in a tense encounter. Malaysia made a shaky start to their Thomas Cup campaign when Justin Hoh fell to Harry Huang in the opening singles.
Top pair Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik put matters level with a straight-games win, but England regained the lead through Cholan Kayan, ranked world’s 153, who outclassed Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin 21–16, 21–15.
Malaysia responded through doubles pair Man Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun, who forced the tie into a decider with a commanding 21–14, 21–14 win over Alex Green and Zach Russ.
It was left to Lee Zii Jia, playing in the third singles role, to deliver under pressure. The former top-10 player overcame Nadeem Dalvi in straight games to secure the winning point and steer Malaysia away from an upset.
In the same group, Japan were in complete control, sweeping aside Finland 5–0. Led by world number one Kodai Naraoka, Japan delivered a composed, all-round performance to move to the top of Group B.
In Group C, Chinese Taipei produced a similarly dominant display, defeating Sweden 5–0 to stay firmly on course for the knockout stage.
The top two teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals, which begin on May 1.
Results — Day 2
Group B:
Malaysia bt England 3–2
Japan bt Finland 5–0
Group C:
Chinese Taipei bt Sweden 5–0–
