CHENNAI: The season so far has been an immense slog for badminton ace Lakshya Sen. Victories have been at a premium and the shuttler, despite his unarguable talent, has largely been at sea while trying to navigate high-intensity matches inside the court. But that narrative can change in no time. With the all-important World Championships in Paris around the corner, Lakshya will be hoping to buck the trend.
With the gold-standard event in mind, the shuttler from Almora is currently training in Paris alongside some of the elite French players. The Indian, who celebrated his 24th birthday on August 16, will be returning to a venue — Porte de La Chapelle Arena — where he had narrowly missed out on an Olympic medal last year. Having said that, he has also tasted success there, having reached the semifinals of the French Open in summer last year. And the Indian had shown some form during his last outing — Macau Open, gaining crucial match-practice in the process. However, he has to be near-flawless from the onset during the BWF Grade 1 event — scheduled to be held from August 25 to 31 — as he will be facing China's Shi Yu Qi, who has been one of the standouts of the season so far with four titles to his name.
The odds are clearly stacked against Lakshya but a victory against the World No 1 shuttler could just be the kick he needs. U Vimal Kumar, Lakshya's coach at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA), concurred.
"It's an opportunity (for Lakshya). That's what I told him the moment I saw the draw. He said everything is going well. Shi Yu Qi is someone whom he has beaten before. The top-30 players who'll be playing in the event, Lakshya has beaten all of them. He can beat any of them but he has to convert his chances. The top guys are also vulnerable and they'll be under pressure. Shi can also be under pressure. He knows Lakshya's strengths and it's going to be a tough match. If Lakshya can play fearlessly and pull off a win, it will be a good breakthrough," Vimal told this daily.
Lakshya this season has either struggled to get his engine burning, going by his early exits or he has seemed to be lacking ideas during the business end of sweat-dripping matches. Vimal, who has been regularly looking to motivate his ward, said that is the issue that he's trying to address at the moment.
"He needs match-practice. Training is not new, he has been doing that for long. He has been looking to work on dealing with different situations, how you employ yourself and pull off wins. He has been faltering in those closing stages. That is an area that they're trying to get better at, to understand when to push the pace, when to keep the shuttle in play without making mistakes when under pressure. That he can only gain in the practice that he's getting over there as there are quite a lot of other elite players who're also practising there. He has to figure things out, everything can't be coached."
With Viktor Axelsen not featuring, the former India national chief coach felt the upcoming Worlds is an open contest in the men's singles department. Lakshya, meanwhile, has met Shi four times (including one during a team event) in his career and has just one W against the Chinese ace. In their most recent meeting in Indonesia (March), the duo had tested each other for three games with Shi eventually coming out on top.
"It's very open at the top. There's no favourite as such. Viktor is not playing. I have not seen anybody playing very consistently. Only Shi has been a little more consistent than others. I feel it's a 50/50 game even though Shi is the top seed and Lakshya's game is down at the moment."
Vimal took the case of Loh Kean Yew's success during the 2021 edition. That was the same year when Lakshya, along with Kidambi Srikanth, had climbed the podium. "Three editions back when Lakshya won the bronze medal at the World Championship, at the same edition, Loh claimed the title and he had beaten Viktor Axelsen in the first round. Lakshya is capable of doing that but he has to really raise his level and play confidently, play fearless badminton."
Will Lakshya produce the spark that he desperately needs? Time will tell.
'High time for Sindhu'
Lakshya's senior counterparts PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy have also experienced a rough season. Injuries and health issues have also affected their game over the course of the season. Sindhu boasts an impressive five medals at the championships and had a reputation of raising her game during big-ticket events. But that reputation has taken a hit in recent times. The determination and will to fight is visible during her matches but she has simply not been able to keep up with her rivals, most of whom are younger than her, at the elite level.
"She has the experience. Overall, the women's (singles) field is not as strong as it was a couple of years back. Only An Se Young is consistent and the Chinese girls and Japanese players are not unbeatable. An has had her injury issues but is clearly the favourite. Sindhu has a good record at the championships but it's high time for her to leave a mark," Vimal said.
