Lakshya Sen's dream run at the All England Championships ended on Sunday with a heart-breaking straight-game loss against world number one and Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen in the men's singles final, continuing India's 21-year-long agonising wait for the coveted trophy.
All eyes were on Sen, 20, who put up a spirited fight against Axelsen in Birmingham. Despite the loss, messages of support and encouragement poured in for him from all quarters, including from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Industrialist Anand Mahindra, who was among the millions cheering for Lakshya Sen, showered praises on the badminton player, calling him a “prince”.
“Viktor’s Imperious as a king perhaps, but @lakshya_sen is a prince who will be crowned sooner or later. Bravo Lakshya, you made us all proud getting to the final of the world’s oldest badminton tournament,” the Mahindra group chief tweeted.
Sen, who has responding to congratulatory messages, replied with a thank-you note. “Always behind you. Cheering,” Mahindra said.
After four days of sensational badminton, Sen faltered on the cusp of history as he committed too many errors to go down 10-21 15-21 to former champion Axelsen in the summit clash.
PM Modi praised Sen for putting up a spirited and expressed confidence that he would keep scaling new heights of success.
The rising star is just the fourth Indian man to make the All England final. Prior to him, only Prakash Nath (1947), Prakash Padukone (1980 and 1981) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) have been there. Prakash Padukone and Gopichand have won the prestigious title for India in the past.
Earlier, Sen won the world championships bronze in 2021 before winning his maiden Super 500 title at the India Open earlier this year. Earlier this month, he reached the final of the German Open.
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