Lakshya Sen storms into Olympic quarterfinals with a lead of 21-18 and 11-6 by winning in two sets back to back against his past nemesis, Jonatan Christie, from Indonesia.
India's shuttler Lakshya Sen progressed to the pre-quarterfinals of the Olympics men's singles badminton competition with a stunning straight-game win over Indonesia's world number 4 Jonatan Christie in the final group match here on Wednesday.
Lakshya reaped rewards after Christie’s return went long into the net which gave the Indian shutttler an edge and an entry to pre-quarters/ round of 16.
A must win for India; Sen continuously retrieved every attack into the confines of the court and turned it into a winning set for him twice, further shocking Christie.
In the first set, Sen secured himself a lead of 13-8 and continued with his promising performance and went through the game on the leading side.
Sen is likley to face compatriot HS Prannoy in the pre-quarterfinals. Prannoy will face Vietnam's Le Duc Phat later in the day.
Sen was simply sensational in his 21-18 and 21-12 thrashing of Indonesia's world number 4 Jonatan Christie, the reigning All England and Asian champion.
“I think it was a tough match today, happy with the way I played,” world number 22- Sen said.
“Yes, definitely (gold is in sight). I think the last few months the form has been really good,” he added.
Sen continued, “There has been ups and downs, but overall, I was in good shape in the last few months, and especially while playing here in the French Open, I found my momentum and from.”
"I was just trying to build up for a good event and I'm really pumped up to fight every match and every point."
The only time Sen had defeated Christie was four years ago at the Badminton Asia Team Championships and came into this match with a dismal 1-4 head-to-head count.
However, the 22-year-old from Almora, a 2021 world championships bronze medallist, showed great maturity and tactical acumen as he went about his business on Wednesday.
He tried to keep the shuttle flat and target the weak forehand of Christie, who looked to slow down the rallies and used his cross-court shots at the corners to trouble the Indian, albeit without much success.
In the first game, Christie opened up a 5-0 lead and soon moved to 8-2. However, Sen regrouped quickly, kept the shuttle flat and waited for his opponent to make mistakes.
It worked as he moved to 7-8 before a thunderous forehand smash earned the Indian a slim one-point advantage.
Sen engaged Christie in fast and flat exchanges to move to 14-12, and the latter slowed down the pace with a gruelling rally, which he won with a push at the backline.
The Indonesian drew parity at 16-16 with a precise cross-court smash, which a diving Sen couldn't reach and soon eked out a two-point lead at 18-16. A straight smash from Sen was followed by a wide smash from Christie, and it was 18-18.
A perfect flat push and then an incredible behind-the-back return in the middle of the next rally gave Sen game point and he converted it easily to earn the bragging rights.
After the change of sides, Sen made some judgment errors at the backline as the two were tied 3-3. But the Indian kept peppering the back court with his pushes and smashes and played at a high tempo. His reflex defence was also rock solid as he moved to 10-5.
Another error from Christie, and it was a five-point advantage for Sen at the halfway mark. The Indian kept his opponent at bay with a barrage of strokes and didn't allow him to come to the net.
The Indonesian made too many errors in desperation, missing the lines often as Sen moved to 18-12. Another flat exchange ended at the net as Sen inched closer to the line.
Another long rally ended with a long shot for the Indonesian as Sen grabbed eight match points and when the Indonesian sent another to the net, the Indian rejoiced.
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