PARIS: Will it be Super Sunday for India and Lakshya Sen? The young star, who already has a glittering collection of medals starting from the 2018 Youth Olympics, is well primed for the biggest match of his career at the La Chapelle arena here.
The 22-year-old, whose collection includes an All England sliver and a bronze at Worlds, takes on second seed Viktor Axelsen of Denmark, a two-time world champion.It seems all the hard work, put in at the Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence, is bearing fruit as Sen hits peak form at the business end of the tournament.
“It feels really good as it’s something I have always dreamed of. There is a lot more work to do now and the real test starts from here,” Sen said after winning the quarterfinal.With two of his biggest influences, badminton legend Prakash Padukone and coach Vimal Kumar in the City of Light to support him, Sen has no shortage of guidance and encouragement.
“Lakshya is looking forward to playing Viktor. Against the Dane he has to raise his level. The priority will be not giving Viktor the opportunity to employ his steep smashes,” Kumar told TOI. Sen has had a great run so far. In his path were world No.3 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia and teammate HS Prannoy but he cleared the hurdles adeptly. Sen didn’t drop a single game till the quarters.
HEAD TO HEAD: VIKTOR AXELSEN leads LAKSHYA SEN 7-1. Sen’s solitary victory came on March 12, 2022 at the German Open semifinal.
The 22-year-old, whose collection includes an All England sliver and a bronze at Worlds, takes on second seed Viktor Axelsen of Denmark, a two-time world champion.It seems all the hard work, put in at the Padukone-Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence, is bearing fruit as Sen hits peak form at the business end of the tournament.
“It feels really good as it’s something I have always dreamed of. There is a lot more work to do now and the real test starts from here,” Sen said after winning the quarterfinal.With two of his biggest influences, badminton legend Prakash Padukone and coach Vimal Kumar in the City of Light to support him, Sen has no shortage of guidance and encouragement.
“Lakshya is looking forward to playing Viktor. Against the Dane he has to raise his level. The priority will be not giving Viktor the opportunity to employ his steep smashes,” Kumar told TOI. Sen has had a great run so far. In his path were world No.3 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia and teammate HS Prannoy but he cleared the hurdles adeptly. Sen didn’t drop a single game till the quarters.
HEAD TO HEAD: VIKTOR AXELSEN leads LAKSHYA SEN 7-1. Sen’s solitary victory came on March 12, 2022 at the German Open semifinal.
#Lakshya #Sens #biggest #test #faces #Viktor #Axelsen #singles #semifinal #Paris #Olympics #Paris #Olympics #News #Times #India
