Hyderabad: A full-throttle jump smash by Lakshya Sen in the second set on the right block of world champion Loh Kean Yew. And that was it.
Sen swung his racquet mid-air and exulted in celebration. The commentators were at the top of their lungs, and the crowd erupted at Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi.
The scorecard read 24-22, 21-17. On his India Open debut, Sen won his first Super 500 title, the biggest title of his career so far.
His rise is no nine days wonder. The last two years have been disorderly with Covid hampering his training, tournaments coming to a halt, and his non-selection at the Sudirman Cup mixed team competition in Finland and the Thomas Cup Finals in Aarhus, Denmark. But there have also been moments of success.
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A bronze in World Championships a few weeks ago and domination at India Open and winning it against one of the most fearsome opponents in the badminton circuit against his good friend, Loh.
His coach, Vimal Kumar, believes that Sen's change in approach and belief instilled in the past tournaments has made him a better player. Vimal also credited Sen's control of the net and attack as reasons behind his thrilling win over his opponent.
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Congratulations @lakshya_sen! When you are on the verge of winning..it’s that anxiety that can drain you. You applied yourself better and found a way to take a tactical break and pulled through. You played a very matured game and you were a better player today! Keep it up! pic.twitter.com/gzeLZHzdrE
— Vimal Kumar (@vimalkumar_u) January 16, 2022 " class="align-text-top noRightClick twitterSection" data="
">Congratulations @lakshya_sen! When you are on the verge of winning..it’s that anxiety that can drain you. You applied yourself better and found a way to take a tactical break and pulled through. You played a very matured game and you were a better player today! Keep it up! pic.twitter.com/gzeLZHzdrE
— Vimal Kumar (@vimalkumar_u) January 16, 2022Congratulations @lakshya_sen! When you are on the verge of winning..it’s that anxiety that can drain you. You applied yourself better and found a way to take a tactical break and pulled through. You played a very matured game and you were a better player today! Keep it up! pic.twitter.com/gzeLZHzdrE
— Vimal Kumar (@vimalkumar_u) January 16, 2022
In an exclusive conversation with ETV Bharat, Vimal takes us through Lakshya's journey where he was shattered after being left out of Thomas Cup coupled with his technical improvements, and what else needs to be done to make him the next big thing in Indian badminton.
Excerpts:
Q. How do you analyse Lakshya Sen's performance against Loh Kean Yew?
A. Lakshya's tactics were better. Both have a very similar style of attacking badminton. The good part was that Lakshya was dictating the pace of the rallies and controlling it. In that sense, he didn't allow Loh to come under the shuttle and execute his hard smashes and fast drops. Whenever he did that, Lakshya was ready for it and countered it effectively. All this upset the rhythm of Loh and Lakshya was able to dominate all the rallies. Lakshya was varying the pace and even in the net area, he kept it very well. He kept lifting the shuttle back to the court which also caught his opposition on the wrong foot. Loh could never come under the shuttle. He was dominating both the game right from the beginning.
Q. There have been some gruelling contests between Sen and Loh. What makes the contest between them so exciting?
A. I think both have a very similar style of play. Whoever controls the defence really well survives. The first time they played was during China Masters and Lakshya won in two games. If you look at the last Dutch Open three months back, he lost to Loh in the finals and that also in straight games. Within a week they played in France in the second round, Lakshya beat him in straight games. The following week, they played in Germany in the semi-finals and there he was beaten in straight games. This was the closest they have played. Either Lakshya would win easy or Loh will win and that has how it has been so far. But yesterday they both played a very steady game. I think Lakshya's attack was better and he was able to control the net better. That was the difference between the two. Both are very young and good players which makes it even more exciting. Both are quick on court. You will soon be watching them playing together in more games. There are good youngsters from Thailand and China as well. These are all the next line of youngsters who will dominate the proceedings in coming years.
Q. What aspect of Lakshya's game has improved?
A. Lakshya has developed a good temperament. He is very patient. The last three months, he has played some gruelling matches against the Japanese and European players which has helped him believe that he can last out. Earlier, there was only one way that he used to play -- attacking. If that didn't work, he will go into a shell and would make mistakes. But I see a lot of change in that approach. He firmly believes he can last out. I have also noticed that he has been able to pull out good matches when the going was tough. He is sticking in there and playing. That is a very positive sign. As he gets better, he will gain more fitness and strength. I am sure, he can do better.
Q. Do you think that training with Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen and Loh Kean Yew helped him achieve what he has done in the recent past?
A. He was there for only two weeks. You cannot say that. That is not the whole thing. When he was going through a very low phase, Viktor called him and they all got together and practised for two weeks. It helped him deal with the disappointment for not being able to make it to the India team. Because he was dropped from the Thomas Cup team which affected him a lot. We are looking at continuing this further because Viktor, Loh Kean Yew -- they are a good group of players. Since Viktor has moved out of Denmark and is setting up his base in Dubai, these players will get together and play and this will really help them. This is how some of the players in Tennis do things.
Q. Last two years have been difficult for athletes. Did Covid hamper his preparations?
A. The worst point was in 2020 when we were in Denmark. He ended up with a serious back spasm and then he immediately contracted Covid when he came back. That was a very low phase. And then there were no tournaments happening. He was going through a very bad patch during that time. As a youngster, he was looking forward to playing tournaments but they were not happening. Subsequently, we could send him to Europe where he played All England Championships but the second wave started when he thought that he would finally be able to play. He couldn't play, he was sitting here and training.
Q. What now for Lakshya? People start expecting Olympic medals when a certain athlete starts doing well...
A. I cannot just say. Now he is playing... just take it that way. I don't want to talk about the Olympics. They are still very far away. He has to remain in the present. He knows that he needs to take care of his body, get physically better, and upgrade his skill-sets. He will get opportunities to play in international tournaments. It's better to just look at six months ahead of time.
Ayushmaan Pandey
