Indian badminton star Lakshya Sen secured his spot in the pre-quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics with a commanding 21-18, 21-12 victory over Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie in a Group L match on Wednesday.
In the match, held at the La Chapelle Arena, Sen clinched the win in 50 minutes. He quickly established dominance by winning the first game 8-2 and maintained his momentum to close out the second game against Christie.
With this win, Sen topped Group L and could potentially face HS Prannoy in the Round of 16. The pre-quarterfinals are set to begin on Thursday.
Earlier in the tournament, Sen had defeated Belgium’s Julien Carraggi in straight sets, 21-19, 21-14, in a match that lasted 43 minutes at the same venue. Sen managed a remarkable comeback in the first game after trailing by four points and maintained his control in the second game.
Sen’s previous win over Guatemala’s Kevin Cordon, which took place on Sunday with a score of 21-8, 22-20, has been officially nullified due to Cordon’s withdrawal from the tournament because of a left elbow injury. Consequently, Cordon’s remaining Group L matches, including those against Christie and Carraggi, were not played.
The BWF General Competition Regulations stipulate that results from matches against withdrawn players are removed. As a result, Sen’s ranking will be determined based on his performances in the remaining two matches in Group L.
