Lakshya Sen in action at Paris Olympics 2024.© AFP
Lakshya Sen mounted a remarkable comeback to become the first male Indian shuttler to qualify for the singles semifinals at the Olympic Games, outwitting Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen in an intense battle, here on Friday. The 22-year-old from Almora fought his heart out against the world number 11 Taiwanese after losing the first game to eventually prevail 19-21 21-15 21-12 in the men's singles quarterfinal that lasted 75 minutes. PV Sindhu and the pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty had lost their respective matches on Thursday to bow out of the Games.
The shock loss of the men's doubles pair had dented India's badminton campaign heavily but Sen provided it a fresh lease of life.
Sen bettered the performances of Parupalli Kashyap and Kidambi Srikanth who had made the quarterfinals in 2012 and 2016 respectively.
"I think this is something that I have ever dreamt of. It feels really good," Sen told reporters after his 75-minute slugfest with Chou.
"There is a lot of work to do now, now it is the real test. I now have 48 hours to recover and get ready for the next match. I have to give my 100 percent.
"He was strong at the net, so I tried to open up the game," he said when asked about the consistent cross-court shots he played.
For 34-year-old Chou, who was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2023, it was yet another quarterfinal finish at the Olympics.
Sen once again went into the match as an underdog, having lost four times in last five meetings against the Taiwanese, a former world number 2. Four of those matches had gone to three games and the Indian was prepared for the long haul.
There was very little to differentiate between the two as they engaged in a physical battle.
Long rallies were the order of the day as both players moved well on the court, returning almost everything they were throwing at each other.
The Indian lost initial points on his return from the forecourt and began making more cross-court shots. Every time he trailed, Sen found a way to level the score, which moved from 2-5 to 5-5 and then 15-15.
Sen took a three-point lead in the neck-and-neck battle when Chou sent a backhand long, netted a return and in between the Indian found a winner on the left of his rival.
The Taiwanese then mounted a comeback, logging three ferocious returns to make it 18-all. A backhand error from Sen gave Chou a mini-lead which he consolidated with a winner on the left of Sen.
Sen saved a game point but Chou did not let slip the next chance, firing an overhead smash to clinch the opening game.
The story was no different in the second game, which again was a see-saw affair. Both players kept outsmarting each other to keep snapping at each other's heels.
At 7-7, there was a small interruption when Sen called for a review after a close line call. Chou's return had landed in but Sen thought otherwise. The replay was not shown on the screen and the umpire just informed Sen that he had lost the review.
It prompted Sen to get into a conversation with the umpire but the Indian kept his cool and from 13-all he pulled away with five points in a row. An error at the forecourt by the Taiwanese gave Sen several game points. He converted the second when his rival netted a return.
Unlike the first two games, the decider unfolded in Sen's favour with Chou making uncharacteristic unforced errors. His returns lost sting and he kept spraying the shuttle out even as Sen played at a high pace with his returns, smashes and the drop shots finding their mark.
Sen quickly build up a healthy 16-11 lead, which Chou failed to bridge. A superb cross court smash gave Sen eight match-point chances and he sealed it when Chou hit the net after a flat exchange.