CHENNAI: Misfortune led to badminton player Lakshya Sen's withdrawal from the SaarLorLux Open in Germany on Wednesday. Tipped to be one of the favourites, he was looking forward to defending his crown. Instead, he was forced to pull out of the $90,000 event after his father, who is accompanying him for the tour, tested positive for Covid-19.
The No 2 seed is in Europe with his father-cum-coach and a physio. It is learnt that all three underwent tests on Tuesday. Sen's father's report returned positive. The player had no choice but to withdraw from the BWF Super 100 meet. The 19-year-old had been drawn against Howard Shu of the USA in his first match.
"My coach has tested positive even though he has no symptoms. I feel being in close contact with him, I should also isolate myself... I don't want to jeopardise the safety of other players and hamper the functioning of the tournament. I request you to kindly grant me permission to withdraw my entry," Sen wrote to the oraganisers.
"All of them are in isolation in a hotel in Saarbrücken. He had no option but to pull out," an official of Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, where Lakshya trains, told this daily.
Sen's father is looking to take another test in a day or two as a Covid-19 negative certificate is necessary for all three to leave the country. Local health authorities are likely to decide the next course of action.
Sen had recently taken part in the Denmark Open, where he reached the second round. After the event, he trained there for a few days before flying to Germany on October 25.
"He had trained in Saarbrücken for a couple of days and he looked fine. I'm just surprised that the organisers didn't have testing facilities. They had to go all the way back to Frankfurt for the tests. Lakshya is fine, yet he can't play and has to stay in isolation. He's gutted," said U Vimal Kumar, Sen's coach.