Lakshya Sen born on 16 August 2001 is an Indian badminton player from Uttarakhand. Sen is a former world junior No. 1. In the Paris Olympics 2024, Sen became the first-ever Indian male badminton player to reach the semi-finals of an Olympic Games after winning the quarter-final match against Chou Tien-Chen in the men’s single event.
The Indian shuttler has also evolved technically in the last few years. Known for his attacking instinct and powerful smashes, Lakshya has worked on his defense and net dribbles and has become a better all-court player.
He has won gold medals at the 2018 Asian Junior Championships in the boys’ singles. He won the bronze medal at the 2021 World Championships and was runner-up at the 2022 All-England Open. Sen was a part of the Indian team which won the 2022 Thomas Cup. He also won the gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Lakshya Sen Personal Details
| Country | India |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 August 2001 (age 22) Almora, Uttarakhand, India |
| Residence | Bengaluru, India |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Years active | 2016–present |
| Handedness | Right |
| Coach | U. Vimal Kumar |
| Men’s singles | |
| Career record | 236 wins, 102 losses |
| Highest ranking | 6 (8 November 2022) |
| Current ranking | 14 (21 May 2024) |
Lakshya Sen’s Personal Life
Lakshya Sen was born on 16 August 2001 in Rasyara Gaon in Almora district of Uttarakhand. His father, D. K. Sen, is his coach. Lakshya started playing the game when he was five years old. Having trained at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, from age 10, Sen had shown his talent as a badminton player at a very young age. His elder brother Chirag competed at the national level. Even his paternal grandfather used to play the game.
Education
Along with pursuing a career in badminton, Lakshya completed his schooling from Beersheba Senior Secondary School, Haldwani, Uttarakhand
Career Highlights
In 2014, he won the Swiss Junior International.
He clinched the bronze medal at the Junior Asian Championship in 2016 after losing to Sun Feixiang 12–21, 16–21.
Sen emerged as the champion at the 2018 Asian Junior Championships defeating the top-seeded World Junior No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the final 21–19, 21–18.
Sen participated at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics as the fourth seed. He settled for the boys’ singles silver medal after losing to Chinese player Li Shifeng in straight games 15–21, 19–21.
Sen clinched the bronze medal at the BWF Junior World Championships after losing to the eventual champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the semi-finals 22–20, 16–21, 13–21.
Sen won the 2019 Belgian International tournament by beating Victor Svendsen 21–14 and 21–15.
He won the men’s singles title in the 2019 Scottish Open in November, winning against Brazilian Ygor Coelho.
Sen was a member of the Indian team clinched the bronze medal at the 2020 Badminton Asia Team Championships.
Lakshya Sen was part of the Indian men’s team for the 2022 Thomas Cup. The team went on to win the Thomas Cup by beating Indonesia 3–0.
He became the Commonwealth champion at the 2022 Commonwealth Games by defeating Ng Tze Yong of Malaysia in the final.
Lakshya Sen won the 2023 Canada Open in Calgary, Canada by defeating China’s Li Shifeng in straight sets 21-18, 22-20.
Achievements
- Ranked No. 1 by BWF World Junior ranking in February 2017
- Won the Asian Junior Championships by beating reigning No. 1 Kunlavut Vitidsarn in 2018
- Won a silver medal in boys’ singles at the Summer Youth Olympics in 2018
- Lakshya Sen’s first win in a BWF World Tour event came at the Dutch Open 2019.
- Bronze medal at BWF World Championships 2021.
- Gold medal at Commonwealth Games 2022 and silver at All England Open.
2024 Summer Paris Olympics
Lakshya Sen became the first Indian male badminton player and third overall after Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu to reach the semi-finals of any badminton event at the Summer Olympics. He defeated Chinese Taipei’s Tien Chen Chou in the men’s singles quarter-final by 19-21, 21-15, 21-12.
His backhand shot during his match with third-seed Jonatan Christie went viral on social media.
India has managed to win a medal in badminton in the last three editions of the Summer Games. Sain Nehwal bagged the maiden badminton medal with a bronze in the 2012 London Games. PV Sindhu stormed into the finals in the 2016 Rio Games to settle for historic silver and then claimed a bronze in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics three years ago.
Did You Know?
He played football, cricket, and basketball at a young age, but calls badminton his “first love”.
In the early days, Lakshya would burst into tears after almost every loss.
He is a fan of English Premier League club Manchester City.
