Lakshya Sen fought with all his might but fell agonisingly short of ending India’s 25-year wait for an All England crown, losing to Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi in a high-intensity men’s singles final here on Sunday.
Playing his second All England final after finishing runner-up in 2022, the 24-year-old from Almora fought hard before losing 15-21, 20-22 in a 57-minute contest. “It was a good match today. The first set was, I think he was a better player, but in the second game I could have finished off better. But I’m happy with the way I played throughout the week,” Lakshya said.
Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi with the All England Open Championships winner’s trophy
“I’m feeling emotional right now, thinking about the match. But overall, lots of positive things today,” he added. The triumph made Lin Chun-yi the first player from Chinese Taipei to win the All England men’s singles title. Lakshya’s defeat meant that Prakash Padukone (1980) and Pullela Gopichand (2001) remain the only Indians to have won the prestigious title.
Lakshya had arrived in the final in impressive form after defeating players like World No. 1 Shi Yu Qi and World No. 6 Li Shi Feng. The Indian had endured a gruelling route to the final, including a marathon 97-minute semi-final against Canada’s Victor Lai during which he battled severe cramps and blisters on his foot.
By the time he stepped on court on Sunday, Lakshya had spent five hours and 16 minutes during the tournament — nearly an hour and a half more than Lin — and the physical toll appeared to show in the final stages. “Not ideal, to be honest,” Lakshya said about his physical condition.
“But when I was playing on court, I was not thinking about anything but to give my best. Yesterday, I was struggling a bit with cramps, but I had some time to recover. I couldn’t recover 100%. Towards the end of the week, all the players were tired with 4-5 matches. It could have been better, but this is what I had,” he added.
1980
The year Prakash Padukone became the first Indian to clinch the All England title
2001
When India’s Pullela Gopichand won the All England crown to be the second Indian on the honours board
5 hrs 16 mins
Total time spent by Lakshya Sen on court before the summit clash — nearly an hour-and-a-half more than his opponent Lin Chun-Yi of Chinese Taipei
1 hr 37 mins
Time duration of Saturday’s semi-final between Lakshya Sen and Canada’s Victor Lai
25
No. of years since an Indian player won the All England Open C’ships — Pullela Gopichand beat China’s Chen Hong 15-12, 15-6 in 2001
Zero
No. of times Lakshya Sen has beaten Lin Chun-Yi in their five encounters
Two
No. of times Lakshya Sen has reached the final of a BWF Super 1000 event — his previous appearance was at the All England Open C’ships in 2022
Seven
No. of BWF World Tour titles won by India’s Lakshya Sen
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