Paris [France]: Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen lost to the reigning Olympic champion Victor Axelsen in the semifinals of the men’s singles competition at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Sunday.
Lakshya lost to Victor by 20-22, 14-21.
Despite facing a higher-ranked player, the world number 22 Lakshya matched the world number two’s intensity really well for a good chunk of the match. At one point, having won six points in a row, Lakshya was leading with a scoreline of 15-9 in the first game. Axelsen made a strong comeback and that combined with some unforced errors, helped the Olympic champion bag the first game 22-20.
In the second game, Lakhsya was fighting really hard, leading by 7-0 at one point. But the Olympic champion Victor showcased his big match temperament by making a strong turnaround to win the game by 21-14 and reaching the gold medal match in 54 minutes.
Axelsen will be defending his Olympic gold medal against Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn on Monday. On the other hand, Lakshya is still in the hunt for a medal and will play for the bronze medal against Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia tomorrow as well.
Axelsen improves his record against Sen, going up to 8-1 in nine single matches. The Indian shuttler’s single win against the Danish came in the 2022 German Open semi-final bout, when Lakshya sealed a 21-13, 12-21, 22-20 victory.
Before making his place in the semi-final, Lakshya locked horns against Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien-Chen and clinched a 19-21, 21-15, 21-12 win.