Paris Olympics 2024: Indias Lakshya Sen faced heartbreaking defeat by Malaysias Lee Zii Jia with scores of 21-13, 16-21, 11-21 in the bronze medal playoff on Monday. He missed out on the chance to become the first Indian male shuttler to win an Olympic medal.Earlier, Sen faced a straight-game loss against reigning champion Viktor Axelsen in the mens singles semifinals at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Sunday. The 22-year-old from Almora, who previously won a bronze at the world championships, lost despite holding a three-point lead in the first game and a 7-0 advantage in the second. He succumbed to Axelsen with scores of 20-22, 14-21 in a match lasting 54 minutes.Disappointing performance from badminton squadFor the first time since 2008, Indias badminton squad failed to secure an Olympic medal. PV Sindhu has won a silver and bronze in the Rio and Tokyo Games, respectively, while Saina Nehwal earned a bronze in the London Games.🇮🇳🙌 𝗔 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗔𝗕𝗟𝗘 𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗣𝗔𝗜𝗚𝗡! It has truly been a campaign to remember for Lakshya Sen as he records the best-ever finish by an Indian shuttler in the mens singles event at the Olympics.👏 Kudos to him for making it this far in his debut Olympic campaign.👉… pic.twitter.com/HCLyZqfYVI— India at Paris 2024 Olympics (@sportwalkmedia) August 5, 2024As it happenedDespite being ranked higher, Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia struggled with errors early on, allowing Indias Lakshya Sen to gain an early lead. Lees frequent mistakes on touch shots and issues with net play gave Sen a 6-2 advantage at the beginning of the match. Playing with the drift, many of Lees shots went out of bounds. Sen took control and led 11-5 at the interval.Lakshya Sens first game victoryThough Sen made a few incorrect line judgments, he managed to secure the first game with his consistent play. Coach U Vimal Kumar advised Sen to maintain his current style of play and remain confident, while Prakash Padukone encouraged him to finish the contest in two games. Following this guidance, Sen started the second game strong with an 8-3 lead, despite playing from the less favorable end.Lee Zii Jias comeback in second gameFacing a do-or-die situation, Lee capitalized on the better end and fought back, winning nine consecutive points to take a 12-8 lead. The former Asian and All England champion displayed improved reflexes, agility, and powerful jump smashes to stay ahead of Sen for the remainder of the game.Decisive third gameIn the decider, Lee quickly gained a 7-2 lead, and despite playing from the worse end, he continued to extend his advantage. Sens lack of confidence was evident as he made several errors. After leading 11-6 at the interval, Lee maintained his dominance and secured nine match points, winning the bronze with a decisive body smash.
