Commonwealth Games champion Lakshya Sen chalked out a fine come from hehind win beating higher ranked Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia to move into the semifinals of the All England Open badminton
Sen, runners-up at the 2022 edition prevailed over the 2021 champion 20-22, 21-16, 21-19 in one hour and 10 minutes. This was Sen’s fourth win over the Malaysian in five head-to-head meetings.
The Indian mixed his shots well to take a 5-1 lead in the first game. World No. 10 Lee Zii Jia, eight rungs above Sen in the badminton rankings, mounted a comeback to nudge ahead at 17-16.
Though Sen saved three game points to level the scores at 20-all with resolute defending, Lee Zii Jia kept his nerve to take the game on his fourth opportunity.
After a slow start to the second game, Sen bagged five points to make it 6-3 and went on to lead the Malaysian by two points at the break.
Lee Zii Jia countered Sen with a string of quick smashes to lead at 16-14 but by winning the next seven points, Sen took the match into the decider.
The Indian was relentless in his attacks in the third game. Despite Lee Zii Jia saving several smashes, Sen continued with his aggressive approach to have a three-point advantage at the break.
After the change of ends in the decider, Lee Zii Jia continued to engage Sen in longer rallies but was unable to take the lead. Eventually, the Indian progressed to the semi-finals after holding on to his advantage.
For Sen who stunned Denmark’s world No. 3 Anders Antonsen in the second round, this
will also be Sen’s second straight semi-final of the 2024 badminton season, having made the last four at the French Open Super 750 event last week.
Being a BWF Super 1000 event, the All England Open offers crucial ranking points for the Paris 2024 Olympics. The ranking period for badminton started on May 1, 2023, and will end next month.