India’s star badminton player Lakshya Sen defeated Belgium’s Julien Karagi 21-19, 21-16 to advance to the Paris Olympics. Lakshya Sen’s win keeps India’s medal hopes alive in badminton singles. Previously his victory against Guatemala’s Kevin Cordon was deleted. The Guatemalan withdrew from the multisport event owing to a left elbow injury. Cordon withdrew from the Paris Olympics. But the win against the Belgian will boost his confidence.
World Championship bronze medalist and world number 18 Lakshya Sen easily defeated Olympic debutant Julian Caraghi of Belgium. Lakshya Sen dominated this match which lasted for 43 minutes. In the first game, Julian Caraghi gave Sen a bit of a fight. But Lakshya Sen continued to dominate the match and won the first game 21-19 in 22 minutes.
Lakshya Sen eyes the knockout round
In the second game too, Lakshya Sen was in the lead. Caragi tried to get back into the match by taking some points. But he quickly took the second game 21-16 to advance. Sen will now face Indonesia’s Jonathan Christie on July 31. The match will start at 1.40 pm on 31st July. The last match will be a crucial one for the Indian shuttler to keep his hopes alive for the knockouts.
The unjust he faced in the multinational event might not be accepted by any other country. The Guatemalan should have withdrawn before the tournament itself. On Monday, the world number four pair of Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida of Japan defeated India’s Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa in the women’s doubles badminton event at the Paris Olympics 2024. In a one-sided second Group C clash, Crasto and Ponnappa were defeated 11-21, 12-21 by the world number four pair.
