NEW DELHI: A 4,000-strong crowd waited all day for the lone local hope to take the court at the India Open. There were chants and good wishes sent his way.
And Lakshya Sen built on that buzz, winning the opening game to the delight of the fans. But his challenge slowly fizzled out as he went down 17-21, 21-13, 21-18 in an hour and eight minutes to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun Yi at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here on Friday.
His loss in the men’s singles quarter-finals — his fourth in as many meetings against the world No.12 — also ended the hosts’ campaign at the Super 750 competition.
“It was a close match. The third game was more about pressure. He was playing well today as per the conditions. I was not prepared for the wind. It was not that windy yesterday. He adapted to the conditions better. I was shaky at the net to lift the shuttle and multiple errors from the front,” Lakshya said after the match.
The drift, caused by open doors and vents and not by air conditioning, was a big factor in the contest with the one controlling it better winning more points.
The left-handed Lin was also quick, both with his feet and returns, maintaining a fast-paced flat game to neutralise Lakshya’s attempts of slowing down the contest, a tactic the 24-year-old often employs when the flow of the match goes against him.
The Indian’s game plan was to keep Lin near the net in the opening game as the Taipei shuttler was playing from the faster side. And the strategy worked as Lakshya raced ahead after the mid-game interval to pocket the opening game.
But once he changed sides, Lakshya’s lifts began to go long and Lin was quick to pounce on shorter lifts and forced a decider.
In the decider, Lakshya began strong by clinching the first four points but Lin then slowed things down and began dominating the net exchanges to keep pace with the local favourite till the change of ends. Once the players changed ends, Lin earned six straight points to take a 18-15 lead.
To his credit, Sen drew level at 18-18. He enthralled the fans with a behind-the-back return but Lin’s deceptive pushes to the back often caught him out.
Lin’s all-out attack strategy helped him win the contest and enter the semis where he will take on 2025 World Championships bronze medallist Victor Lai of Canada, who defeated Chinese Taipei’s Chi Yu Jen 21-18, 17-21, 21-15.
“I could have been a little more clinical towards the end, but credit to him, he played really solidly. The entire match was very tight, and it came down to finishing points better. Both of us were trying to stay attacking, but he managed to control the game better. A lot of things could have been done better. I wasn’t completely happy with the execution,” concluded Lakshya.
