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Indian badminton ace Lakshya Sen went down to familiar foe Lin Chun-Yi in the men's singles final of the All England Open here on Sunday as the country's wait to see a champion again at the prestigious tournament continued. The 24-year-old Indian fought hard but could not overcome the challenge of the left-handed Taiwanese shuttler, losing the intense title clash 15-21 20-22. It was Sen's fifth straight defeat to Lin and second runner-up finish at the tournament. He had made the final in 2022 as well, but could not cross the finish line. Sen, who battled through blisters and cramps during a gritty semifinal win on Saturday, produced a spirited campaign through the week, defeating a string of higher-ranked opponents before falling short in the title clash against Lin. Only two Indians -- Prakash Padukone (1980) and P Gopichand (2001) -- have won the men's singles title at All England Open in history.
Lakshya Sen's gruelling semifinal win over Canada's Victor Lai in the All England Open Championships on Saturday was a demonstration of badminton at its toughest and the Indian ace at his bravest, said former mentor and national coach Vimal Kumar. Battling painful blisters on his foot and severe cramps, a gritty Sen overcame Lai to storm into the final of the All England Open in Birmingham, moving within one win of ending India's 25-year wait for the prestigious title. It turned out to be one of the finest matches of his career as Lakshya fought for one hour and 37 minutes before sealing a 21-16, 18-21, 21-15 win over the 21-year-old Lai, who had claimed a surprise bronze at last year's World Championships in Paris. "Lakshya, you have made us all incredibly proud. For me, the determination and resilience you showed today were truly unmatched. It was a physically draining contest of the highest intensity, yet you fought every point with remarkable courage," Kumar told PTI after Sen's
Battling painful blisters on his foot and severe cramps, a gritty Lakshya Sen overcame Canada's Victor Lai to storm into the final of the All England Open here on Saturday, moving within one win of ending India's 25-year wait for the prestigious title. It turned out to be one of the finest matches of his career as Lakshya fought for one hour and 37 minutes before sealing a 21-16, 18-21, 21-15 win over the 21-year-old Lai, who had claimed a surprise bronze at last year's World Championships in Paris. It will be Lakshya's second appearance in the All England final after finishing runner up at the 2022 edition. The 24-year old from Almora will now chase history when he takes on world No. 11 Lin Chun-yi of Chinese Taipei in the summit clash on Sunday. Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) are the only Indians to have won the All England title. Apart from them, only Prakash Nath (1947) and Saina Nehwal (2015 runner up) came close with runner up finishes. Lakshya display
Ace Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen stormed into the All England Open Badminton Championships men's singles final with a hard-fought win over Victor Lai of Canada in the semifinals here on Saturday. The 12th ranked Sen beat world number 16 Lai 21-16 18-21 21-15 in the match that lasted one hour and 37 minutes. Lai had won a bronze medal in the world championships in Paris last year. This will be Sen's second final appearance in the prestigious tournament, having finished runner-up in 2022. Sen, who continued his dream run in the BWF Super 1000 tournament, will face Chinese Taipei's Lin Chun-Yi in the final on Sunday. Chun-Yi beat world number two Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand in the other semifinal on Saturday. Sen had beaten China's world No. 6 Li Shi Feng in straight games in the quarterfinals on Friday. He had stunned world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi of China in the first round.
Two-time Olympic medal-winning Indian badminton star P V Sindhu, who was stranded in Dubai due to closure of airspace in the Gulf region, has returned to the country after pulling out of the All England Championships in Birmingham. Sindhu posted on X to announce that she is back in the city. "Back home in Bangalore and safe. The last few days have been intense and uncertain, but I'm truly grateful to be back to my house," she posted. "A heartfelt thank you to the incredible ground teams, Dubai authorities, airport staff, immigration, and every single person who stepped up and took such good care of us during a very difficult time. The empathy and professionalism meant more than words can say. "For now, it's time to rest, reset, and figure out the next steps," she added. The former world champion was on her way to Birmingham via Dubai, when she was stranded after the flight operations were suspended in the Gulf region following the US and Israeli bombing of Iran. Iran subsequently
Indonesian coach Irwansyah Adi Pratama, who trains two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu, had a narrow escape after an explosion occurred close to where they were stationed at Dubai Airport while travelling to Birmingham for the All England Championships. Sindhu and Irwansyah were left stranded at Dubai International Airport after flight operations were suspended following escalating tensions in the Middle East. The tournament is scheduled to begin on Tuesday. Explosions were reported across parts of the Gulf after Iran responded with a salvo of missiles, including in the United Arab Emirates' capital Abu Dhabi and in Dubai, prompting the suspension of all flights at Dubai airport. "In Dubai at the moment, flights getting cancelled. There was an explosion in airport, so are stuck here at the moment," Irwansyah told PTI. "They have put us in the hotel, we are okay but again there is a little bit of worry at the same time. We want to go to All England. I hope we can fly out today ...
Ace Indian shuttler P V Sindhu's impressive run came to an end after a straight-game defeat to China's Wang Zhiyi in the women's singles semifinals of the season-opening Malaysia Open Super 1000 here on Saturday. The two-time Olympic medallist could not sustain the pressure against the world number two, committing too many unforced errors in a 16-21, 15-21 loss. Playing her first tournament after recovering from a foot injury that kept her on the sidelines since October last year, Sindhu also let slip an 11-6 lead in the second game. The loss also brought down curtains on India's campaign in the tournament. Sindhu took the fight to her higher-ranked opponent early, hitting hard and using her reach effectively. She produced her trademark cross-court smashes to race to a 5-2 lead before Wang's subtle touch helped her draw level with a run of points. A few misses from Wang allowed Sindhu to edge ahead 9-7 but the Chinese player clawed back once again to take a slender one-point lead
Olympic medallist shuttler Saina Nehwal has suggested the Indian players need to improve their physical fitness to cope with the demands of international badminton and attain the consistency required to win titles regularly on the world tour. In a free-flowing interaction with PTI, the 2012 London Games bronze medallist spoke about how injuries have become "normal" for the current generation, and how the new crop of women's singles players lack "aggression" and have become "soft" in the age of social media. "We need to be more consistent to be like how it was before. We need more consistent results from Satwik-Chirag or Lakshya or Sindhu or the upcoming ones. We need the results for sure," Saina, who is in the city for the Legends' Vision Legacy Tour India, said on Monday. "Maybe they should look for good trainers and physios. The coaching part is not that difficult if your body is 100%. So maybe just focus on more trainers and physios and getting your body stronger to win ...
Indian shuttlers HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen will look to rediscover their touch, while the emerging crop will aim to turn promise into performance at the USD 475,000 Kumamoto Masters Japan Super 500 tournament beginning here on Tuesday. Lakshya, who endured a lean patch before rediscovering his touch with a runner-up finish at the Hong Kong Open followed by quarterfinal appearances at the Denmark and Hylo Open, will be keen to build on that momentum. Seeded seventh, the 24-year-old from Almora, who finished fourth at the Paris Olympics, faces a tricky opening-round opponent in Japan's world No. 25 Koki Watanabe. Prannoy, a 2023 World Championships bronze-medallist, has struggled since his pre-Olympic bout of chikungunya hampered his preparation for Paris, where he played through pain but exited early. The 33-year-old from Kerala, one of India's most consistent performers in recent years with a 2023 Malaysia Masters title and a runner-up finish at the Australian Open, will look to .
Tokyo Olympics silver medallist and women's badminton great Tai Tzu-ying of Chinese Taipei has announced her retirement from the sport, bringing the curtains down on a glittering career during which she won 17 BWF World Tour titles and finished runner-up in 12 tournaments. The 31-year-old shuttler, known for her artistry and wrist wizardry, cited recurring injuries as the reason behind her decision. Her last BWF title came at the India Open in 2024. "A beautiful chapter has come to an end. Thank you, badminton, for everything you have given me," Tai Tzu wrote on her Instagram account on Friday. "Eventually, my injuries forced me to leave the court. I couldn't end my career the way I had hoped, and it took me a while to come to terms with that. "The TTY era has come to an end. But I hope the spirit of TTY stays with you always." Born in the southern Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung,the former world no. 1 has been battling injuries since last year and has been unable to return to the ...
India's two-time Olympic medallist shuttler PV Sindhu bowed out, while HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen earned hard-fought wins to advance in the Hong Kong Open Super 500 tournament here on Wednesday. Sindhu, who had reached the BWF World Championships quarterfinals last month, lost the women's singles round-of-32 contest 21-15, 16-21, 19-21 to unseeded Danish shuttler Line Christophersen. However, Prannoy, ranked 34th in the world, humbled 14th ranked Lu Guang Zu of China 21-17, 21-14 in 44 minutes, while Sen got his campaign going with a gruelling 22-20, 16-21, 21-15 win to secure a place in the men's singles pre-quarterfinals. Kiran George also secured a place in the men's singles last-16 getting the better of Singapore's higher-ranked Jia Heng Jason Teh 21-16, 21-11 in 34 minutes. World No. 31 Ayush Shetty overcame a stiff challenge from lower-ranked Chinese-Taipei shuttler Su Li Yang 15-21, 21-19, 21-13 in slightly over an hour to secure a place in the last-16 in men's singles. For
The humble shuttlecock, the lifeline of badminton, has become the sport's biggest worry with prices of imported feather shuttles more than doubling in the past year amid an acute shortage of raw material in China. A recent article in French newspaper L'Equipe attributed the crisis to changing food habits in China, where preference for pork over duck and goose meat has reduced poultry farming, and to a global surge in badminton's popularity. The squeeze has forced India's top stakeholders to admit the sport can no longer depend solely on goose and duck feathers. "Sooner or later, we have to move away from feathers as a natural product. The sport has grown exponentially, and between China, Indonesia and India alone, we account for nearly two-fifths of the world's population consuming shuttles, chief national coach Pullela Gopichand told PTI. "The scarcity isn't just about fewer ducks or geese being reared, it's also because more people are playing badminton. That's a good sign, but .
India's campaign at the Macau Open Super 300 badminton tournament came to an end on Saturday after Lakshya Sen and Tharun Mannepalli suffered semifinal defeats in their respective men's singles matches. Lakshya, a 2021 world championship bronze medallist and reigning Commonwealth Games champion, couldn't match the pace and precision of Indonesia's Alwi Farhan, going down 16-21 9-21 in a 39-minute contest to continue his patchy run that has seen him struggle with form and fitness this season. In the other semifinal, India's Tharun Mannepalli went down fighting against Malaysia's Justin Hoh in a gripping three-game contest that lasted an hour and 21 minutes. The 23-year-old Mannepalli, ranked 47th in the world, squandered a strong start to lose 21-19 16-21 16-21 in a match marked by fluctuating momentum and a flurry of unforced errors. Lakshya vs Farhan =========== It has been a tough season for world number 17 Lakshya, who has had seven first-round exits and two second-round ouste
India's Tharun Mannepalli shocked top seed Lee Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong to enter the quarterfinals of the Macau Open along with compatriot Lakshya Sen here on Thursday. Tharun rallied splendidly to outwit Lee, a world No. 15, 19-21, 21-14, 22-20 in a match that went past the hour-mark. The 23-year-old, holder of world No. 47 ranking, now has reached his second quarterfinals of a Super 300 tournament after entering the last eight at the German Open in February. In the quarterfinals, Tharun will face world No. 87 Hu Zhe An of China. Later, Commonwealth Games champion Lakshya Sen fought past Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo of Indonesia 21-14, 14-21, 21-17 to enter the last-eight stage. However, Ayush Shetty was ousted after a 18-21, 16-21 loss to Malaysia's Justin Hoh. In the women's singles India's Rakshitha Ramraj went down against Busanan Ongbamrungphan of Thailand 21-14, 10-21, 11-21 in a match that lasted 51 minutes. In the mixed doubles, fifth-seeded Indian duo of Dhruv Kapila and Tanis
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will aim to extend their consistent run and grab their maiden title of the season at the Macau Open Super 300, starting Tuesday, as the top Indian shuttlers continue their preparations for next month's World Championships in Paris. The Asian Games champions earned yet another semifinal finish at the China Open Super 1000 last week, going down to Malaysian second seeds Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik. It has been a season of steady performances for the world No. 3 pair, who have made the semifinals at the India Open, Singapore Open, and Malaysia Open besides reaching the quarterfinals at the Indonesia Open. They, however, suffered a second-round exit at the Japan Open last week. Despite multiple deep runs, Satwik and Chirag, seeded second this week, are yet to convert their form into a title win -- something they will be keen to change in the French capital. They face the Malaysian duo of Low Hang Yee and Ng Eng Cheong in the opening round. In t