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On Thursday, August 1, Lakshya Sen defeated fellow Indian HS Prannoy in straight games in the pre-quarterfinals of the men’s singles badminton event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. At the Porte de la Chapelle Arena, Prannoy was no match to the skill and aggression of Sen, who reached the quarter-final stage with a scoreline of 21-12, 21-6.
The start of the first game saw Lakshya Sen get off to a flyer before earning a 11-6 lead over HS Prannoy at the halfway break. Sen kept the momentum going in the first game with his enterprising play, allowing Prannoy no opening to make a comeback before taking it 21-12.
In the second game, Lakshya Sen took advantage of the seemingly lethargic play of HS Prannoy, building a big 11-3 lead at the halfway mark. It is important to note that the experienced HS Prannoy had been dealing with an illness in the lead-up to the Paris Olympics 2024.
Sen kept on being on the offensive against Prannoy, who looked completely out of sorts in the latter half of the second game. It led to the young Indian taking the second game 21-6, to advance to the next round of the men’s singles event of the Paris Olympics 2024.
With that, Lakshya Sen became the third Indian men’s singles badminton player after Parupalli Kashyap and Kidambi Srikanth to reach the quarter-final stage at the Olympic Games in the last 12 years.
