Lakshya Sen leads India to historic badminton season

KUMAMOTO: Indian badminton achieved its best-ever season on the BWF World Tour after Lakshya Sen won the Japan Masters title in Kumamoto on Sunday. According to the Badminton Association of India (BAI), Indian players have secured nine titles and four runner-up finishes in Super 300 and higher-level tournaments held outside the country this year. The achievement surpasses India’s previous record of six titles and three runner-up finishes in 2023.

Lakshya defeated Japan’s Koki Watanabe 13-21, 21-18, 21-14 in a 64-minute final. Despite losing the opening game, the eighth-seeded Indian recovered strongly to win the next two games and claim the championship. The victory followed his recent success at the Hylo Open, where he defeated Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie 21-17, 21-10 in the final. These back-to-back titles have strengthened his position in the race for the BWF World Tour Finals.

Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu also contributed significantly to India’s successful season by winning the Japan Open Super 750 title in July and the Hylo Open Super 500 title in November. She also finished runner-up at the French Open in October. Lakshya secured another runner-up finish at the All England Open earlier this year.

The men’s doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won the Singapore Open and China Masters, both Super 750 events. They also finished second at the Thailand Open. Other Indian winners included Devika Sihag at the Thailand Masters, Tanvi Sharma at the Taipei Open and Ashmita Chaliha at the Korea Open. Women’s singles contributed five titles, including two from Sindhu.

Lakshya has climbed eight places to 10th in the World Tour Finals race after his recent victories. The tournament, scheduled from December 9 to 13 in China, will feature the top eight players or pairs across all disciplines. His strong performances have improved India’s prospects ahead of the season-ending competition.