Although Lakshya Sen saved four game points in the second game to defeat Li Shi Feng 21-18, 22-20 to win the Canada Open Super 500 in Calgary. With six straight points, Lakshya Sen displayed the necessary mental strength of his in difficult conditions against the defending All-England champions.
Though the win is Lakshya’s second BWF World Tour title, with his first title coming at the Indian Open in 2022. This is his first title since the Commonwealth Games in August last year. Lakshya is the second Indian singles player to win the title this year after HS Prannoy’s victory at the Malaysian Masters.
What did Lakshya Sen say about his victory?
Lakshya, who underwent nose surgery for a deviated septum after the World Championships last August, continued his winning streak, besting Shi Feng in the process. The Indian had won the Thailand Open last month to improve his head-to-head record to 4-2.
“Going into the Olympic qualifying year was difficult because things were not going my way. So this victory will give my confidence a big boost,” Sen told in an interview.
“I had to go deeper in some matches, the conditions were different and it was important to get used to it,” said the top midfielder.
However, Commonwealth Games champion Lakshya was ahead 6-2 in the first game and never relinquished the lead. Even as Li Shi Feng leveled at 15-15, the target remained on attack and he scored three quick points to keep the Chinese midfielder at arm’s length. Soon, they won the game with fast-paced badminton full of exchanges.
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Furthermore, in the second game, Li Shi Feng had a substantial 20-16 lead, and was close to the third game. But as he has shown time and time again, no leadership is safe around the senator. As with most winners, Sen first forced Shi Feng into making mistakes, then dealt with the winners on his behalf. As six points came and went, Lakshya Sen did well to enter his first BWF World Tour final in 15 months.
“It has been an incredible week for me. I got better as the tournament went on, got used to the conditions, and played well tactically yesterday and today, so I’m happy with my performance,” Sen said after sealing the title with great success.
“In the second game, it was very difficult for me to predict anything because I was behind all the time, so I just wanted to keep the lead. The main thing was to be patient and everything worked out in the end.
Moreover, Sen recorded his fifth win in seven matches against the Chinese player and has come a long way up his ranking after falling to world No. 19. “He (Li) is a tough opponent, always expect a good match against him. The way I played today, I dominated the net and was also attacking. But I managed to win important points,” Sen said.
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