India's star badminton player Lakshya Sen revealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that during the recently-concluded Paris Olympics 2024, his coach Prakash Padukone confiscated his phone. Sen, who made his Olympic debut in Paris, faced a heart-breaking exit as he narrowly missed out on a bronze medal, losing to Malaysia's Lee Zii Jia in a hard-fought three-game match. Notably, Padukone, who was head coach of the Indian badminton team in Paris, was critical of Sen’s performance after the exit and expressed that players need to step up and take more responsibility.
At a felicitation ceremony hosted by PM Modi for the Indian contingent at his residence in New Delhi on August 15 (Thursday), Sen mentioned that he was oblivious to the social media hype surrounding him as he was entirely focused on his matches.
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Prakash Sir Dad Taken Away My Phone During Matches' Says Lakshya Sen
At the ceremony, when PM Modi asked Lakshya Sen if he knew he had become a celebrity, Sen replied that his coach, Prakash Padukone, had taken his phone away during the matches. Reflecting on the Paris Olympics, Sen said it was a valuable learning experience, though missing out on a medal was heartbreaking. He expressed his determination to give his best next time.
PM Modi asked Sen, “Do you know you have become a celebrity now?”
In reply, Sen said, "Prakash Sir had taken away my phone during the matches and said that I would only get it back after them. But yes, I got a lot of support. I would want to say that this (Paris Olympics) was a good learning experience for me. It was also a little heartbreaking that I missed out even after coming so close. I will try my best next time."
PM Modi cheekily replied, “If Prakash sir is so strict, will send him next time too.”
Watch the video here:
Lakshya Sen made history as the first Indian male shuttler to reach the Olympic semifinals in men's badminton. He topped his group with wins over top players, including Jonatan Christie and HS Prannoy and stunned Chou Tien-chen in the quarterfinals. However, he narrowly missed out on an Olympic medal after losing to world no. 1 Viktor Axelsen in the semifinals and then by losing against his Malaysian opponent Lee Zii Jia in the bronze medal match.