New Delhi: India’s Lakshya Sen saw his determined run at the All England Open Badminton Championships end in the final after a straight-games loss to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi on Sunday.
The Indian shuttler, ranked No. 12 in the men’s singles standings, went down 21-15, 22-20 to world No. 11 Lin Chun-Yi in the summit clash at Utilita Arena Birmingham. The match lasted just under an hour, according to olympics.com.
Lakshya produced a strong campaign throughout the tournament. He stunned world No. 1 and defending champion Shi Yuqi of China in the opening round. The Indian also defeated sixth-ranked Li Shi Feng, the reigning Asian Games champion, in the quarter-finals.
He then survived a gruelling 97-minute semi-final against Canada’s Victor Lai on Saturday. Lakshya battled cramps and blisters during that match but still secured a place in the final.
Lin Chun-Yi, who had earlier beaten former world champion and Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the semi-final, started strongly in the title clash. The Chinese Taipei player relied on powerful smashes and quickly gained control of the opening game.
Lakshya had already spent more than five and a half hours on court during the tournament. The physically demanding schedule made it difficult for him to match Lin’s intensity.
The Indian shuttler responded well in the second game. The Paris 2024 Summer Olympics semi-finalist used clever shot placement and court craft to counter Lin’s power. Lakshya even opened a 9-4 lead before Lin fought back and forced a tense finish.
Lakshya saved a match point during a dramatic closing phase. However, Lin eventually sealed the contest in straight games.
The victory extended Lin Chun-Yi’s head-to-head record against Lakshya Sen to 5-0. He had also beaten the Indian in the quarter-finals of the India Open earlier this year before going on to win the title.
This marked Lakshya’s second loss in an All England final in four years. He had also reached the title clash in 2022 but lost to Viktor Axelsen.
India’s only All England champions remain Prakash Padukone and Pullela Gopichand.
