File image of Lakshya Sen.© AFP
Despite a run of five wins at Paris Olympics 2024, Lakshya Sen lost his final two matches to end up without a medal and finish fourth in the badminton men's singles event. Looking back, Lakshya has pointed out a key reason that led to the change in momentum during his bronze medal match. The 23-year-old had lost to eventual gold medalist Viktor Axelsen in the semi-final despite leading by five and seven points respectively in the two sets. Lakshya also won the opening game in the bronze medal match against Lee Zii Jia, but lost in the end.
"In the second game, that side of the court had some drift. Even after the lead, I knew I couldn't control the shuttle," said Lakshya to The Indian Express. "And then the momentum suddenly changed, and he started playing better. Even when he drew level, I was fighting for every point," he added.
Lakshya pointed out that he had made a few too many unforced errors during his crucial match with Viktor Axelsen. Lakshya had led 18-13, and then had three game points at 20-17, in the first set, but ended up losing five points in a row. In the second game, despite being 7-0 up, Lakshya lost momentum dramatically, losing it 21-14.
"In crucial situations I could've played differently. I didn't play well at all in the end, and there were a lot of unforced shots. I needed to be a bit more patient," he added.
Lakshya mentioned that he would be tweaking his game as he gears up to challenge for future Olympic medals.
"Overall, in how I played, there were some things I was happy and proud about at Paris. But this is gonna hurt for some time. I'm looking to add and change a lot of things moving forward," he said.
India has never seen an athlete move up from fourth to an Olympic medal, but being only 23, Lakshya has age on his side to do so. Even Viktor Axelsen tipped him to be a force in years to come.