In the Paris Olympics 2024, India's star badminton player, Lakshya Sen, has delivered a stellar performance and secured his spot in the men's singles semifinal. In the quarterfinal, Lakshya defeated Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen with scores of 19-21, 21-15, 21-12. For the first time, an Indian badminton player has reached the men's singles semifinal in the Olympic Games. Lakshya now aims to secure at least a silver medal by winning the semifinal match.
The 22-year-old's semifinal opponent will be Denmark's Viktor Axelsen, the champion of Tokyo Olympics 2020. Currently ranked World No. 2, Viktor has won the World Championship twice. India's Lakshya Sen is ranked 22. Their semifinal match is scheduled for August 4 (Sunday) at 3:30 PM IST. Following the losses of PV Sindhu, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, and Chirag Shetty, all hopes in badminton at the Paris Olympics now rest on Lakshya.
For Lakshya Sen, the semifinal match will not be easy. Lakshya and Axelsen have faced each other eight times, with Viktor winning seven of those encounters. Lakshya managed to defeat Axelsen only once, in the 2022 German Open, winning the decisive game 22-20. This victory, although two years ago, might boost Lakshya's confidence and show that Axelsen is not an insurmountable challenge.
Source: aajtak
Their most recent encounter was at the Singapore Open earlier this year in the Round-32, where Axelsen triumphed in a hard-fought battle, winning 21-13, 16-21, 21-13. A positive sign for Lakshya is that Axelsen has not appeared to be in his best form this year, having been eliminated early in several key tournaments.
Both Viktor Axelsen and Lakshya Sen will give their all on this big stage. Axelsen is known for his swift net exchanges, drop shots, and powerful smashes from deep court positions. His proficiency in shot-making enables him to control rallies better than playing defensively.
Lakshya Sen will need to give his 100% against Viktor. The performance Lakshya exhibited against Chou Tien Chen needs to be replicated in this match. There's no doubt that Lakshya is capable of this, as he is among the best defensive players in the world. His blend of defense and attack against Chou was remarkable. The cross-court smashes from left to right worked exceptionally well for Lakshya in the quarterfinal.
Earlier this year, Lakshya Sen was not included in the Indian team for the Thomas Cup. Following this, he underwent training with a former World No. 1 player. Lakshya's coach, Vimal Kumar, revealed this, mentioning how Lakshya was particularly impressed by Viktor's professional attitude during training. Vimal stated, 'When Lakshya returned, he mentioned how intense Viktor's training sessions were and how focused he remained during those sessions. These observations were real eye-openers for Lakshya.'
