PARIS: “The real test begins now,” Lakshya Sen had said on Friday evening after making the semifinals of the men’s singles. The Indian shuttler found out that it was indeed real, and mentally bruising, at the Porte de la Chapelle arena on Sunday. The 22-year-old was up against world’s No.2 Victor Axelsen of Denmark. World champion, defending champion, towering over his rival at six feet four, the 30-year-old Dane was a formidable, intimidating opponent.
Sen knew that. He had won just one in eight encounters against the Dane before this and taken just three games off him.
But the Indian was fearless when he went in there. He gave it his all, left his heart out there on the court. He walked away with several unanswered questions ringing in his head. He had lost 20-22, 14-21 and it would take time to sink in.
Sen was in control of the first game. After fighting with all his skills and courage, he had the Dane cornered, having scored six points in that game at one stage to go up 17-11. He finally had three game points in his hands. 20-17. He had to go for the kill. Something snapped. He lost it there.
Sen was probably thinking too much, too hard. He made a service error. You don’t do that against a player who has often come back from the dead in hostile arenas across the world. This was the lifeline Axelsen needed. He could see that the Indian across the net was nervous. It was his turn to go for the kill. Axelsen drove the knife in hard, taking the game at 22-20, reeling off five straight points.
The tone of the contest was set. Or was it? Sen returned to serve in the second game and looked unaffected as he scored seven straight points. 7-0. This was unreal. Axelsen looked a bit unsettled as he kept making unforced errors, sending his returns long or wide. Sen was cruising. He served well, returned well, had a couple of delectable drop shots and a few smash hits too.
But the fans in Sen’s corner were probably thinking too far ahead. Probably so was Sen. Axelsen being a champion of comebacks, got a foot in the door when a Sen return went wide. Down 1-7, the Dane slowly started catching up.
Sen was the better player at the net throughout the contest. He kept trying to draw his tall rival in with his drop shots. The Indian won some crucial points at the net and his experienced rival realised that he needed a change in strategy. Instead of playing the drop shot contest, he hit out long and took control from the backcourt. From there came the half smash, the flick and the stinging powerful smash.
Axelsen caught up with Sen at 10-10 with his trademark smash. Lakshya stayed in the game till 12-12 and then suddenly lost rhythm. He was losing control. Axelsen sensed it and knew just what to do. Suddenly, he looked to be in a hurry. He smashed at will, hard and brutal. Sen had no more answers. He kept making unforced errors and threw in the towel.
After the match, Axelsen admitted that Sen played better on the day. “He could have won today. Four years down the line he will be a better player, I am sure,” he said.
So, what was he thinking when he was down 17-20 in the first game? “I tried not to think. I was blank. He thought a lot. It is natural. He got nervous and I had to strike. He made mistakes due to his nerves. My experience helped me.”
When asked about Sen’s game, Axelsen said: “He played better than me. But I won it here,” he said, pointing to his head.
And what was his weapon against the Indian? “Good badminton,” said the Dane with a smile as he walked away.
And what did Sen think of the missed opportunity. “I should have won the first game. Overall, it was a good match, and I am already looking ahead,” he said, not wanting to speak about the bitter defeat.
“I have to learn to be a bit more patient. I made errors but honestly, I played what I thought was the best in that situation on the court. There are many lessons for me from this match. But there is no time to think about them now. I have to forget this and the earlier matches,” he said.
He will be back on the court on Monday. He still has a date to keep – the bronze match against World No. 7 Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia.