2012–2015: Youth Olympics gold and Asian Junior Champion In 2012, Shi participated in his first
Asian Junior Championships and came in second in the mixed team event after China lost 0–3 to Japan in the final. In the boys' singles event, he lost to C. Rohit Yadav of India in the round of 32 after a three-game battle that lasted for 65 mins. In the 2013 edition of the
Asian Junior Badminton Championships, Shi, as a member of the Chinese team, came in first in the mixed team event, beating South Korea 3–1 in the final. He competed at the
Asian Youth Games, winning the bronze medals in the boys' singles and mixed doubles, partnered with
Chen Yufei. Later that year, Shi made his senior international debut at the
Korea Grand Prix Gold where he would lose in the first round to South Korea's
Hong Ji-hoon in two straight games after advancing from the qualifiers. In 2014, Shi had the first breakthrough of his fledgling career. He won the mixed team and boys' singles titles at the
Asian Junior Badminton Championships. He first helped China defend its mixed team title by sweeping South Korea 3–0 in the final. In the boys' singles event that followed, he advanced to the final, defeating
Kanta Tsuneyama of Japan in three games to win the title. Shi then followed up with another mixed team success at the
World Junior Championships, where China defeated Indonesia 3–0 in the final. He also won a silver medal in the
boys' singles event after losing to his compatriot
Lin Guipu in the final. In August, at the
Youth Olympic Games, he won the boys' singles gold after avenging his defeat to Lin Guipu at the World Junior Championships final by defeating him this time. Shi, however, did not have a good year in 2015; his best showing was at the
China Open, where he reached the quarter-finals of the tournament, losing to
Son Wan-ho of South Korea in three games.
2016: Three tour titles In 2016, Shi became a first-line player on the Chinese badminton team. He started the season poorly though, reaching only the semi-finals of the
Syed Modi International in his first eight on tour. However, his form improved later in the year and he won his first senior title on tour by winning the
Indonesia Masters after his compatriot
Huang Yuxiang retired in the second game of the final with Shi leading 21–12, 11–0. He followed up from his success by winning the
French Open next, beating
Lee Hyun-il in two straight games. Shi then continued his rich veins of form by winning the
Bitburger Open, beating India's
Sourabh Varma in the final.
2017: All England finalist and Asian Championships bronze Shi continued his good form into 2017. He started the season by winning a bronze medal in the
Asia Mixed Team Championships where China lost to the eventual winner Japan 1–3 in the semi-finals. In March, he reached the final of the
All England Open by beating his senior
Lin Dan in the semi-finals. He, however, would lose in the final to Malaysia's
Lee Chong Wei in two straight games. Shi reached another final at the
Swiss Open, but lost tamely to Lin Dan in the final this time around. In April, he competed in the
Asian Championships and finished with a bronze medal after losing to compatriot
Chen Long in the semi-finals. In August, Shi participated in his maiden
World Championships but was knocked out by Hong Kong's
Wong Wing Ki in the third round. At the year-end
World Superseries Finals, he lost in the semi-finals to
Viktor Axelsen of Denmark.
2018: First All England and World Tour Finals titles, Thomas Cup and Asiad Team Champions, World Championships silver 2018 was one of Shi's best seasons to date. He began by winning the
India Open in January, beating
Chou Tien-chen of Chinese Tapei in two straight games. In February, he won a silver medal in the
Asia Team Championships after China lost to Indonesia 1–3 in the final. He started March by reaching the semi-finals of the
German Open, where he lost to
Ng Ka Long of Hong Kong in three tightly contested games. He then competed at the
All England and won the crown, defeating
Lin Dan in the final. It was his biggest-ever individual title on tour and his first Super 1000 title. In May, Shi was selected to represent the Chinese team in the
Thomas Cup and he did not disappoint, winning the crucial men's singles tie against
Kenta Nishimoto in the final, to help his team to a 3–1 victory over Japan. In July, he participated in his second
World Championships and made it to the final where he lost to Japan's
Kento Momota, thus finishing with a silver medal, which is his best showing in the tournament thus far. In August, Shi participated in the
Asian Games men's team event where China claimed the gold medal for a record sixth time after defeating Indonesia 3–1 in the final. In October, he reached his second
French Open final but was defeated by
Chen Long in two straight games. At the year-end tourney, Shi avenged his defeat at the
World Championships by beating
Kento Momota 21–12, 21–11 to win his first
World Tour Final title.
2019: Sudirman Cup Champion, Asian Championships silver, and First Swiss Open title Shi's first tournament of the season was at the
Malaysia Masters where he reached the quarter-finals but was defeated by Malaysia's
Daren Liew in three games. In March, his quest to defend his
All England title was thwarted by
Viktor Axelsen after losing to him in the semi-finals. Shi then bounced back quickly from his disappointment by winning the next tournament, the
Swiss Open. There, he defeated
B. Sai Praneeth to win his first
Swiss Open title. In April, he competed at the
Malaysia Open but lost to
Lin Dan in the semi-finals. He then participated in the
Asian Championships held in Wuhan, China, where he finished with a silver medal, after losing to
Kento Momota in the final. In May, at the
Sudirman Cup, Shi helped the Chinese team to win their eleventh title after he completed a stunning comeback over World No.1 Kento Momota to clinch China's three-game sweep of Japan. In July, Shi participated in the
Indonesia Open where he suffered a horrible ankle injury in a match with
Anders Antonsen and had to retire. For the rest of the year, Shi did not perform well. He only reached the final of the
Macau Open, where he lost to Thailand's
Sitthikom Thammasin.
2020: All England quarter-finalist Shi had a hectic start to the 2020 season, where he participated in three straight tournaments in January to begin the season. He reached the quarter-finals of both the
Malaysia Masters and
Indonesia Masters, where he lost to Malaysia's
Lee Zii Jia and Hong Kong's
Lee Cheuk Yiu, respectively. The following week, at the
Thailand Masters, Shi managed to reach the semi-finals, where he lost to
Ng Ka Long. In March, he competed in the
All England Open but was defeated by
Viktor Axelsen again albeit, in the quarter-finals this time. This will turn out to be his final tournament of the year as the rest of the tourneys were mostly cancelled after the
COVID-19 outbreak.
2021: Second Sudirman Cup and First National Games title In 2021, Shi competed in only four tournaments, namely the delayed
Tokyo Olympics in July, the
Chinese National Championships, the
Sudirman Cup in September, and the delayed
Thomas Cup in October. In the
Tokyo Olympics, Shi cleared the group stage easily and met
Jonatan Christie of Indonesia in the knockout round where he had no problem dispatching his opponent, beating him 21–11, 21–9. In the quarter-final, he faced
Viktor Axelsen again and lost, which ended the Olympic campaign. In the
Chinese National Championships, he finally claimed his first National Games title after beating Jiangsu teammate
Lu Guangzu in the final. In the
Sudirman Cup, Shi performed well, helping China defend its title from 2019 against rival Japan in a 3–1 victory. In the
Thomas Cup, China reached the final but lost to Indonesia 3–0. He did not play in the final.
Controversy Shi played as the first men's singles against
Kento Momota of Japan at the
2020 Thomas Cup semi-finals in Aarhus, Denmark. Shi lost the first set 22–20 and retired in the second just as Momota was about to serve at 20–5. This “bizarre” retreat caused some controversy. Shi later cited injuries and tiredness for his withdrawal in a social media post, citing that since he withdrew when the opponent was at 20 points, he has not recorded a loss because it was not at 21. However, that did little to quell netizens' anger, with people calling him out for his unsportsmanlike behaviour.
Suspension In an interview before the
2022 Thomas Cup Finals, the president of the Chinese Badminton Association,
Zhang Jun, confirmed that after an internal review, Shi had been suspended from the national team and was barred from playing in any international tournaments for one year. The internal ban was due to the infamous incident from the 2020 Thomas Cup competition and the immature comments that he made after the match.
2022: Strong return, two tour titles At the
2022 BWF World Championships held in Tokyo, Japan, Shi returned to action for the first time in 10 months, after serving a ban, and beat Azerbaijan's
Ade Resky Dwicahyo and Denmark's
Rasmus Gemke in the first two rounds but lost out for a place in the quarter-finals after losing to Indonesia's
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting in the third round. The following week, he participated in the
Japan Open and played well, reaching the semi-finals where he would lose to Chinese Tapei's
Chou Tien-chen in another three-set battle. In October, at the
Denmark Open, Shi had his best showing of the season when he defeated Malaysia's
Lee Zii Jia in a thrilling three-setter to clinch his maiden Danish title and his first world tour title in three years. After his success in Denmark, Shi would struggle to replicate his best form in the next two tournaments that he competed in. At the
French Open, he lost in the first round to Thailand's
Sitthikom Thammasin and followed that up with yet another first-round defeat to Singapore's
Loh Kean Yew at the
Hylo Open in Germany. He then finished the season strongly by winning the
Australian Open title after defeating his fellow countryman
Lu Guangzu. He is the only men's singles player, besides
Viktor Axelsen and
Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, who had won 2 or more
BWF Tour titles in
2022 despite participating in only 6 competitions that year.
2023: Third Sudirman Cup and Second Asian Team gold Shi began his season at the Malaysia Open but lost to Chou Tien-Chen in the first round in a closely-contested rubber game. At the India Open that followed, he advanced to the second round, where he lost to Viktor Axelsen in another three-set battle. At the Indonesia Masters, Shi made it to the semi-finals, but lost to Jonatan Christie in the process. He continued his busy start to the season by competing in his fourth consecutive tournament at the Thailand Masters. He made it to the semi-finals but was defeated by Chinese Taipei's rising star,
Lin Chun-yi, in straight sets. In March, at the German Open, he suffered a shock first round defeat to Kento Momota. The following week, at the prestigious
All England Open, Shi beat Malaysia's
Lee Zii Jia en route to his third All England final but lost the first game and suffered a meltdown at the second, losing 24–26, 5–21 to his fellow countryman
Li Shifeng. At the Swiss Open, Shi experienced another first round loss, this time to H. S. Prannoy in three sets. His inconsistent form continued at the Badminton Asia Championships held in Dubai, where he lost to Lee Cheuk Yiu in the second round. In May, Shi won all his matches en route to helping China cliched a record 13th Sudirman Cup. In the subsequent months, his performance notably improved, as he advanced to the quarter-finals in 5 out of 7 tournaments, with semi-finals appearances at the Korea and China Open. At the postponed
2022 Asian Games, Shi was a member of China's team that secured victory in the team event. In the individual competition, he progressed to the final but was defeated by his compatriot Li Shifeng. He then participated in the European leg of the tour, competing in Denmark and France, where he reached the semi-finals and quarter-finals, respectively. His consistency continued at the Kumamoto Japan Masters, where he reached the final, losing to Viktor Axelsen. However, Shi's streak of seven consecutive quarter-final or better appearances at the world tour finally came to an end with a surprising defeat on home soil in the second round to
Christo Popov at the China Masters. As a result of his good performance at several tournaments, Shi qualified for the
World Tour Finals as the third seed and one of the two only former winners participating (the other being Viktor Axelsen). He advanced to the semi-finals as the top in group by beating Axelsen and Kodai Naraoka. He eventually reached the final but could not replicate his group stage win over Axelsen, losing in straight games.
2024: World No.1, Second World Tour Finals and Four Super 750/1000 titles Shi, who at that time was ranked 6th in the BWF rankings, opened the 2024 season as a finalist at the
Malaysia Open, moving him up and matching his career-high rank of world number 2 in the BWF ranking. He then ended his 14-month title drought by winning the
India Open. In March, he won his second title of the year in the
French Open. Shi participated in the
All England Open, until he retired in the quarter-finals due to a fever, against Jonatan Christie. He would subsequently lose to Jonatan Christie in 3 sets at the 2024 Asian Championships, achieving bronze. At the
2024 Thomas Cup, Shi led China to claim the Thomas Cup, beating 100% of his opponents. At the
Singapore Open, Shi won his 3rd Super 750 title of the year, beating his compatriot
Li Shifeng in 3 thrilling sets, 17–21, 21–19, 21–19. Shi claimed his second Super 1000 title of his career at the
Indonesia Open defeating his compatriot Li Shifeng in the semi-finals and the number 4 seed
Anders Antonsen in the finals, each having been beaten in 3 sets. This was Shi's 4th title halfway into 2024, and 5th final he has reached out of 6 world tours, with each world tour being a Super 750 or Super 1000 title. Following this victory, Shi ascended to his world ranking high of No.1 on 11 June 2024. After the 2024 Olympics, Shi continued to showcase strong performances on the BWF World Tour, though his journey was mixed with both successes and setbacks. At the Japan Open, he advanced to the semi-finals but was defeated by Alex Lanier. Following that, at the Korea Open, he reached the quarter-finals, beating Son Wan-ho and Ng Ka Long but losing to Lee Cheuk Yiu. In the China Open, he was eliminated in the first round by Anthony Sinisuka Ginting. He then competed at the China Masters, where he made it to the semi-finals but was ousted by Jonatan Christie. In a standout performance, Shi triumphed at the BWF World Tour Finals, where he emerged as the champion. His victory at the World Tour Finals marked a successful conclusion to his post-Olympic season.
2025: World Champion, fourth Sudirman Cup, second All England and first China Open titles Shi opened the 2025 season as a champion in the
Malaysia Open. He decided to withdraw from the
India Open, and later competed in the
2025 Indonesia Masters, where he finished as a semi-finalist. He managed to win another
All England Open title in March in straight games over
Lee Chia-hao. During the 2025 Sudirman Cup, he led his country to victory, winning a record extending 14th Sudirman Cup title for China, whilst defeating all of his opponents. He then managed to defeat
Alex Lanier in the final of the
Japan Open in straight sets to win the tournament. Shi finally won the
China Open, his home court international tournament for the first time, against his younger compatriot
Wang Zhengxing in a tough three sets. Although he won the match, he praised Wang for his impact, speed, and strength, acknowledging that Wang surpassed him in these respects owing to his younger age. In the
2025 BWF World Championships Shi came up onto the competition with a new image by donning golden lock hair in order to break his world title drought. It looked promising since Shi had no problems in the first two rounds against
Lakshya Sen and
Julien Carraggi, brushing them off in straight sets. Shi faced his first challenge in the round of 16 against
Christo Popov, where he needed three sets to overcome his French counterpart. After losing the first game 20–22, Shi got back up to win the next two games 21–13 and 21–18. This pattern continued as Shi also won in both the quarter-finals and the semi-finals against his compatriot,
Weng Hongyang and a young Canadian sensation,
Victor Lai in a grueling three games. In the semi-finals match in particular, Shi saved two match points against Victor Lai in the second game before winning the third game and setting the final with the reigning champion from 2023, Kunlavut Vitidsarn. In the first game, Vitidsarn surged forward from behind to win the first game 21–19 before Shi tied it back in the second game with a 21–10 score. In the decision, Shi led 11–9 at the interval, and the game remained neck and neck. It was ultimately decided by Vitidsarn's final mistake, when he hit the shuttle long on match point, giving Shi his first World Championships title. Shi, who is more well known for his triumph in team competition rather than individual competition said after the win - "People often perceive me as performing better in team events. But in individual competitions, I always give my utmost effort. This time, finally securing my first individual world championship title makes me so delighted. I'm genuinely chuffed." Shi made his comeback two months later in
Denmark Open. He lost the final against Jonatan Christie. During the final of the season-end tournament, the
2025 BWF World Tour Finals, Shi injured his toe in the group stage match against Chou Tien-Chen. This injury hampered him and his opponent, Christo Popov, outplayed him in the final to get his first World Tour Final title.
2026: Asian Champion Shi started the year with a good performance in the
Malaysia Open. He retired at the second game in the final due to right shoulder injury, giving the title to Vitidsarn. Two months later, Shi lost to Sen in the first match of
All England Open. In April, Shi won his first
Asian Championships when he defeated
Ayush Shetty in two straight games with scoreline of 21–8, 21–10. == Achievements ==