History was made on quarterfinals day as France, Canada and Malaysia celebrated landmark achievements at YONEX All England Open 2026.

In the opening session, Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue became the first French mixed pair to reach the semifinals in the Open era (starting 1980) of the sport’s oldest tournament. Later in the evening, Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan followed with a milestone of their own, ending Malaysia’s 19-year wait for a women’s doubles last four appearance. Victor Lai then became the toast of Canada, his 18-21 21-17 21-15 win over Koki Watanabe making him the first Open era semifinalist from his country.

Gicquel/Delrue set the tone with a 21-16 21-16 victory over second seeds Jiang Zhen Bang/Wei Ya Xin – the second Chinese favourites to fall after top seeds Feng Yan Zhe/Huang Dong Ping in the second round. The French played with authority throughout, constantly pressing forward and keeping their opponents under pressure. Delrue was particularly sharp at the net, intercepting drives and setting up attacks that paved the way for a first win in three meetings against their opponents.

“We worked a lot on my position in attack,” said Gicquel. “We know we are strong at the net and mid court but the next step was winning more points when attacking.”

For Delrue, the performance reflected the work they put in over recent weeks.

“The work we did last month is working,” she said. “We wanted to keep them under pressure and we did that.”

The sense of breakthrough carried into the women’s doubles, where Tan/Thinaah defeated Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma/Meilysa Trias Puspitasari 21-9 21-18 to reach their maiden All England semifinal after six attempts. They became the first Malaysian women’s pair to accomplish the feat since Wong Pei Tty/Chin Eei Hui in 2007.

Thinaah said: “In previous editions we were always quarterfinalists, so near yet so far. To get through now is a really happy feeling but it doesn’t stop here.”

The world No.2s dominated the opening game before being tested late in the second, when the Indonesians closed to 16-16. A lunging defensive scramble from Tan, dropping almost to her knees to keep the rally alive, proved a turning point.

“It was just my natural reaction,” Tan giggled. “I just wanted to cover the other side. Winning that point gave us a lot of confidence.”

Semifinals will present another formidable challenge against 2024 winners Baek Ha Na/Lee So Hee. The head-to-head is level at 3-3.

Then came perhaps the biggest achievement of the day, Lai following in the footsteps of women’s singles player Wendy Carter – Canada’s last All England semifinalist in 1978.

“It feels amazing,” beamed Lai. “We all dream of winning this tournament but I didn’t have that expectation coming in. I just wanted to play my best, take it one game at a time and now I’m in the semis.

“I’ve heard of Wendy’s exploits and she’s a Canadian legend, so just to be up there is pretty amazing.”

Lai could make further history on Saturday but he must get past 2022 runner-up Lakshya Sen in their first meeting. Sen defeated 2023 winner Li Shi Feng 21-13 21-16 to advance.

→ Results (Quarterfinals)

→ Order of Play (Semifinals)

WHAT OTHERS SAID

“I love it here. I enjoy the tournament, my performance and how I play. I love the all England.” – An Se Young after her ninth consecutive win over Putri Kusuma Wardani

“I had prepared so much for this tournament. I lost to a better player but I will be back stronger.” – Alwi Farhan reflects on his All England debut after a 21-17 21-12 defeat to Kunlavut Vitidsarn

“After we won the Australian Open, we changed our mindset. We wanted more, stay motivated, train harder and keep that hunger alive.” – Nikolaus Jaoquin after he and Raymond Indra ousted third seeds Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang 21-18 21-12 to reach the semifinals at their debut All England

“I couldn’t control my emotions towards the end. My hand was shaking and I was nervous. One of the regrets I had was thinking I wouldn’t have another chance to play the All England after we split.” – Tse Ying Suet after she and Tang Chun Man made history as the first Hong Kong China doubles semifinalists