Lakshya Sen put up a brave front in pursuit of India’s third All England Open title, but it fell short when the 24-year-old lost to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi in a thrilling men’s singles final in Birmingham on Sunday.
It was Lakshya’s second All England final appearance after he finished runner-up in 2022. After conceding the first game 15-21, Lakshya fought really hard to take the match to the deciding game but unfortunately lost the second game 20-22.
“Yes, I think it was a good match today. The first game was, I think he was a better player, but in the second game I could have finished off better. But I’m happy with the way I played throughout the week,” Lakshya said after the match.
“I’m feeling emotional right now, thinking about the match. But overall, lots of positive things today,” he added.
While, Lin Chun-yi became the first player from Chinese Taipei to win the All England men’s singles title.
Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) are the only Indian shuttlers to have won the prestigious All England title, while Prakash Nath (1947) and Saina Nehwal (2015) had come closest with runner-up finishes before Lakshya’s two final appearances.
Lakshya’s road to the finals was impressive after registering victories over world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi and World No. 6 Li Shi Feng. The Indian shuttler also endured a gruelling 97-minute semifinal against Canada’s Victor Lai during which he battled severe cramps and blisters on his foot.
By the time he stepped on court on Sunday, Lakshya had spent five hours and 16 minutes in matches during the tournament, nearly an hour and a half more than his opponent Lin Chun-Yi. The fatigue was obvious in the final. “Not ideal, to be honest,” Lakshya said.
“But when I was playing on court, I was not thinking about anything but to give my best on court. Yesterday I was struggling a bit with cramps, but I had some time to recover. I couldn’t recover 100%.
“Towards the end of the week, all the players were tired with 4-5 matches. It could have been better, but this is what I had,” Lakshya said.
