Lakshya Sen Advances to Second Round at Kumamoto Masters Japan

India's Lakshya Sen progressed to the men's singles second round with a win in straight games over Chinese Taipei's Chi Yu Jen in the Kumamoto Masters Japan Super 500 badminton tournament at Kumamoto, Japan on Wednesday. The eighth-seeded Indian, who received a big boost after winning the Hylo Open in Germany, beat Chi 21-19, 21-18 in a 50-minute clash. However, India faced defeats in the doubles matches. India's Dhruv Rawat and K. Maneesha went down 21-16, 14-21, 14-21 to fourth seeds Ye Hong Wei and Nicole Gonzales Chan of Chinese Taipei, while Hariharan Amsakarunan and Tanisha Crasto lost 7-21, 9-21 to top seeds Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China.

Lakshya, a 2021 World Championships bronze medallist, had suffered a loss against Chi at the Malaysia Open last year. He had returned the favour at the Australia Open the same year.

On Wednesday, it was another close match as the two fought tooth and nail for supremacy.

World No. 13 Lakshya fell 4-7 behind in the opening game as Chi, ranked 24th, grabbed a slender 11-10 lead at the break. On resumption, the Taiwanese extended the gap to 15-11, but a relaxed Lakshya slowly worked his way to 14-16 with a cross-court smash.

The Indian frustrated Chi with his superior net game, creating openings and finishing with cross-court smashes. Soon it was 16-16 as Lakshya unleashed a down-the-line smash.

A defensive block into the net from Lakshya after a precise smash from Chi saw the Taiwanese open up a two-point lead again.

Lakshya clawed back to 18-18 but then faltered in a parallel exchange.

However, Chi erred in a net dribble and Lakshya produced another cross-court smash to earn a game point and sealed it by winning another exciting rally.

The second game too followed a similar pattern as the two battled for each point and were tied 8-8, but Lakshya stepped up to ensure a three-point lead at the break.

Chi got his act together to draw parity at 13-13, but Lakshya again surged to 15-13 with a cross-court smash. The Taiwanese shuttler kept snapping at Lakshya's heels, levelling at 15-15, and took the lead at the right time with a smash to go 17-16 ahead. However, Lakshya sprang into action quickly to establish control at 19-17.

Lakshya dodged a shuttle as it landed out to earn two match points. He sealed the contest when Chi's return of serve landed in the net.

Original News: PTI

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