India Open: Lakshya Sen Goes Down Fighting In Quarter-Final Thriller

Lakshya Sen engaged in a gruelling three-game match but fell short in crucial moments, losing to Chinese Taipei’s world No. 12 Lin Chun-Yi in the men’s singles quarterfinals at the India Open Super 750 on Friday.

The 24-year-old from Almora lost 21-17, 13-21, 18-21 to Lin Chun-Yi in a highly intense match.

How Lakshya Sen Lost?

The contest featured high-quality play with long rallies and sharp net exchanges, testing each player’s patience and precision over three exhausting games.

Lakshya started strongly, engaging Lin in fast-paced rallies. The score remained tight from 4-4 to 7-7 before Lakshya pulled ahead at the interval.

Two crisp winners took Lakshya to 13-10. Sustained pressure at the forecourt, assisted by Lin’s errors, extended his lead to 16-11. A 54-shot rally

ended with Lin hitting long, giving Lakshya five game points, and he secured the opening game on his third chance.

After the change of ends, controlling the shuttle became challenging, and Lakshya struggled with his length, trailing 11-5 at the interval. A cross-court smash and a sharp return brought him closer at 7-12 as he targeted Lin’s backhand.

A deceptive serve forced Lin wide, and another error made it 9-14. An on-the-line smash reduced the lead further. However, the left-handed Lin regained control, moving to 18-13 after a tough 56-shot rally. Lakshya repeatedly missed the baseline, allowing Lin to level the match.

Back on his preferred side, Lakshya raced to a 4-0 lead in the decider. Lin responded with two jump smashes and stayed close as the scores moved to 8-6, with a fortunate net cord favouring Lakshya.

Lin fought back to 9-9 with successive cross-court smashes, briefly taking the lead before Lakshya regained momentum. After the final change of ends, Lin drew level at 12-12, but three consecutive errors let Lakshya lead 15-12.

The scores were level again at 15-15 as Lin intensified his attack. At 18-16 down, Lakshya produced a stunning behind-the-back shot to stay in the rally before finishing at the net, then levelled with a body smash.

Lin responded with a strong return-to-serve, moving two points away and earning match points when Lakshya found the net.

The contest concluded when Lakshya slipped during a tense rally and sent back a weak return, which Lin capitalised on to win the match.

(With inputs from Agencies)