Lakshya Sen scores stunning upset over Chinese World No 1 Shi Yuqi in Round 1 at All England

“He was timing it well and that made a huge impact. Shi was not expecting really hard smashes from Lakshya today. Few he belted down from his round the head area were outstanding,” coach Vimal Kumar said, adding this was similar to how Sen had defeated Yuqi at Asian Games team final in 2023.

Sen who had returned miserable from the Badminton Asian Team Championships last month after a loss to Loh Kean Yew, down with fever and a glutes muscle issue, had hunkered down to prepare for the All England. Like the Olympics, he had the stiffness draw possible, slated to play the Chinese No 1.

Though Yuqi is way ahead of most in rankings, he hadn’t quite been on the court since his Malaysian Open exit. And Sen pounced on his hesitation. Sen did two things right, besides the catapult smash. At the net he found acute angles to drop the shuttle very close to the net. And his pinpoint drops landed close to the meshing too, pulling Yuqi ahead.

Sen led 11-7 in the first following the basic tenet of namaste allowing the Chinese to hustle him. He retrieved fabulously to keep the pressure on, and brought back vintage strokes played from unbalanced positions, to stay ahead of the Chinese. Striking a perfect length, he got the flat hits going, and criss crossed in fast exchanges at the front court, not really bothering with tumbles. It’s almost how the Korean doubles play, and his coach’s imprint was beginning to become clear.

From 16-10 up in the first, Shi Yuqi did bring it close to one point for 18-17. But it was the pressure that Sen had created that showed in the next point when Yuqi served out, giving the Indian a 19-17 lead.

Sen has botched far too many finishes, at the Olympics and even at the World Championships last year, to let go another chance. So he tapped a kill to go up 20-18. The Chinese ace however prolonged the rallies, and Sen dived to his right, got up, scrambled to the back for a back-to-the-net return but was staring at a 20-20 situation as Yuqi won that point. These have been all too familiar, but Sen wasn’t prepared to give up yet. He prevailed in a long exchange to get yet another of his 5 set points, 21-20. And then the snappy criss crosses did it for him as he went up 22-21. Sen would finally convert to take the lead, and wreak havoc with the Chinese mind.

Sen has been called the most dangerous floater by Anders Antonsen, a terrible storm to run up against in Round 1. Yuqi, like Jonatan Christie at Olympics, witnessed the eviction.

In the second, Sen surged right towards the end to make up a 4 point deficit and bring it within 19-20 with a 350 kph blitz smash, now often hit with a jump. It wasn’t that Sen strikes the shuttle high, but he shields his shoulder by getting an angle on the smash by using the forearm. The biceps flex the tattoos. Though the Chinese fought to take the second, he was clearly rattled.

Sen kept up the pressure in the decider, going up from 11-9 to 16-13, and the jump smashes, much like Lee Chong Wei added deception in the air and travelled deep. Yuqi sensed a chance at 15-18 after lugging out everything he had throwing it at the Indian, but his shot selection remained baffling, mostly because Sen never allowed him any rhythm.

At 20-17, the Chinese was hitting wildly and mostly wide, even as Sen finally found returns on his retrieving, and didn’t take his foot off the pedal.

Coach Vimal Kumar said, “Lakshya was very calm and composed today. Right from the start, he made Shi work hard for every single point, and eventually the Chinese player began to tire. At one stage in the second game, I felt Lakshya was getting a bit fatigued, but he recovered well and raised his level. His attacking play was excellent too. Overall, it was a very confidence boosting win. Lakshya’s Holi gift for Indian Badminton today.”