In below-par season, Lakshya's All England run ends in quarters

When Lakshya Sen competed in the All England Championship last year, he was hoping to find a spark to ignite his season.

- Shahid Judge

MUMBAI: In the run to the semi-final, he found just what he was looking for, and it helped him gain a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Sen returned to Birmingham this week once again looking for a resurgence. The 23-year-old has struggled with inconsistent form since his run to the semi-final at the Olympics in August. This year, he had failed to get past the first two rounds in the three tour events he played.

He did manage to get a round further at the All England, reaching the quarter-final where his run ended after a 10-21, 16-21 loss to China's world No.6 Li Shi Feng on Friday.

The defeat, however, came after he pulled off the upset of the tournament, having beaten defending champion Jonatan Christie in the second round a day earlier.

Against Li, Sen was coming up against an opponent with whom he had a 7-4 head-to-head record. Their rivalry dates back to their junior days—their first-ever encounter was in the second round of the 2017 Junior World Championship.