Paris Olympics 2024: Lakshya Sen Advances to Semi-Finals in Men's Single, Historic Achievement

Lakshya Sen has reached the semi-finals in the Men's Singles badminton event at the Paris Olympics, achieving a historic milestone. He defeated Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei with scores of 19-21, 21-15, 21-12. This victory marks the first time an Indian player has reached the semi-finals in the men's singles category at the Olympics. Chou Tien Chen, currently ranked 12th in the world for men's singles, initially led after winning the first game 19-21. However, Sen made a strong comeback in the second game, winning 21-15 to level the match. The final game was closely contested in the first half, but Sen dominated the latter half, securing a comfortable 21-12 win and making history. Previously, Indian players HS Prannoy, Kidambi Srikanth, and Parupalli Kashyap had all reached the quarter-finals in the men's singles category at the Olympics, but none had advanced further. Sen will now face the winner of the match between Viktor Axelsen and Kean Yew Loh. Notably, Sen's record against Viktor Axelsen is not favorable, with only one win out of eight encounters. India has consistently won medals in badminton at the last three Olympics. In the 2012 London Olympics, Saina Nehwal won bronze. In the 2016 Rio Olympics, PV Sindhu secured a silver medal, and in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Sindhu again won bronze. The responsibility of continuing India's badminton legacy now rests on Lakshya Sen's shoulders.