Lakshya Sen overcame severe cramps and a tough opponent in Canada’s Victor Lai in a marathon semifinal to storm into the final

Lakshya Sen overcame severe cramps and a tough opponent in Canada’s Victor Lai in a marathon semifinal to storm into the final of the prestigious All England Open Championships in Birmingham on Saturday.

The 24-year-old came out on top of a bruising, physical battle 21-16, 18-21, 21-15 that lasted 97 minutes, and produced one of the best tussles the sport has seen in recent times.

All England Open Title

On Sunday, when Lakshya faces Lin Chun-Yi of Chinese Taipei in the final, he would be aiming to become only the third Indian after his mentor Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) to win the All England Open. Like Padukone, who trained Lakshya in his early days and was even accompanying him during the Paris Olympics where he finished a heartbreaking fourth, Lakshya has now twice made it to the final of the All England.

In 2022, Lakshya had lost to none other than Viktor Axelsen in the final of the All England. Though Lakshya has not won a match against Chun-Yi in three meetings so far, he would back himself to reverse the trend on Sunday given how brilliantly he has played in the tournament so far.

Chinese players

Taking out two top Chinese players — world champion and world No. 1 Shi Yuqi in the first round and Asian Games gold medallist Li Shifeng in the quarterfinals — is exceptional. Coming unseeded in the tournament, Lakshya has played bold and smart badminton, and more importantly he has shown the legs to last. All his matches have been excruciating, punctuated by long rallies. But Saturday it was the toughest, with Lai too retrieving every shot. Several rallies went for more than 50 shots and one went for an incredible 86 shots.

Draining semifinal

The only thing important for him would be the recovery after Saturday’s long, draining semifinal. In the deciding game, Lakshya was leading 11-8 halfway through when cramps set in and his movements were severely restricted. When he wanted a break, the umpire told him, “You can retire.” Lakshya showed immense courage to go through the pain even as he smartly started taking more chances to kill and not go into rallies. In the process he gave away a few points and Lai, who too was feeling the heat of the long-drawn contest, nudged closer at 16-14. But it was Lakshya who, by his sheer will and hunger, closed out the match.

Lakshya is a fighter: Vimal

“I feel truly happy today,” coach Vimal Kumar told sportsbackstory.com.

“After the Olympic Games, Lakshya had to face a lot of criticism for supposedly not showing that extra determination. It was a very difficult period for him, and for those of us who know how much he cares and how hard he works, it was painful to see him so put down,” said Vimal.

Needs to recover

“But today, the way he fought on court, the courage and resilience he showed, has erased all those doubts. This performance was a reminder of the fighter he truly is.

“He needs to now recover well for tomorrow and be able to produce another incredible match. Lakshya truly deserves this moment,” said Vimal Kumar.

EOM