Lakshya Sen faced his first loss of the Paris Olympics, going down to the reigning Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen in the men's singles semifinal. The unseeded Indian had three game points in the first game and led the second 7-0, but the world no. 2 raised his level at the crucial moments to win 22-20, 21-14.
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But this loss doesn't mean the end of Lakshya's record-breaking campaign. The 22-year-old Indian can still win a medal when he plays Malaysia's 26-year-old Lee Zii Jia, who is the seventh seed, for the bronze.
The match will be on Monday evening at 6 PM.
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What are Lakshya's chances against Lee?
Simply put, Lakshya has a great chance to win the bronze based on form guide and track record. He has a superior 4-1 record against the Malaysian on the BWF Tour.
In fact, Lakshya won his first major senior title back in 2016 -- India International Series -- beating Lee in the final. Yes, their history goes that far back. He has since beaten Lee in every individual competition they have played, the only loss coming at the 2022 Thomas Cup in the quarterfinals (a tournament India went on to win.)
And most of Lakshya's wins have come in the biggest tournaments. He stunned Lee, who was the defending champion, at the 2022 All England Championships, where Lakshya reached the final. He also beat Lee in the first round of the 2023 Indonesia Open Super 1000, after which Lee took a break from badminton for a while.
The bronze medal match will undoubtedly be the biggest and Lee's motivation will be higher after a semifinal loss. But Lakshya has the ability to raise his game in such moments and against a player he has regularly beaten, he will fancy his chances.
What are Lee's strengths?
Lee is a top player, regularly seeded and has won big titles. But he is also a mercurial player, whose levels fall and dip, sometimes in between the same match.
He has an attacking style, and his explosive strokeplay can match the best. He also has the physicality needed for the long haul. What he lacks is consistency. His natural style lends to a bunch of unforced errors and in the last few years he has lost some of the force in the smashes.
He's looking to change his erratic way though and has spoken about how he's working to find some balance between his highs and lows this year. He is moving towards a more control-based game now, where the difference between his best and his average level is not so big. But under pressure, his natural game veers towards aggression.
How can Lakshya nullify those strengths?
Lakshya's biggest strength -- his stunning defence -- will be his biggest weapon against Lee. He is one of the fastest young players on court and can retrieve from virtually any corner and be ready for the next shot. This counterpunching, coupled with his quick reflexes, can frustrate aggressive players like Lee into making mistakes.
In the last few months, Lakshya has been adding to his natural game by way of sharpness at the net and an attacking strokeplay, which we have been seeing more and more in Paris. This variation can unsettle the momentum like it did against top players Jonatan Christie and Chou Tien Chen (and resulted in the big lead against Axelsen). This could be a crucial ploy against Lee too, who is a rhythm player of sorts.
Lakshya also has big belief against top players, which is that young Indian athlete quality we see on the rise. As his coach Vimal Kumar said, he is a big-match player who has beaten most of the top 20 which gives him great confidence heading into a big match.
What Lakshya needs to be careful of?
The one thing that could derail Lakshya would be nervy errors in the big points. Like in the three game points against Axelsen. He has to quickly regroup after the loss and learn from it to avoid making mistakes and keep his advantage.
He has played more matches than any of the other players in the top four by virtue of being in a group of four and not getting a quarterfinal bye. But he is in great physical shape and has played himself well into the courts.
If he can channel the confidence as he did against Christie and the quality against Chou, an Olympic bronze medal is within touching distance. It will be the first for an Indian man at the Olympics.